Europe – with PR into the Third World War?
Massive disinformation via mainstream media also in Switzerland
by Robert Seidel,*
(21 June 2024) Some news items in the flood of current reports seem like a nightmare from times gone by: In spring 2024, one European politician after another announced that they would supply more weapons to Ukraine and, if necessary, send their own soldiers. Today, all signs point to the fact that some European governments are willing to fight the war for the USA on European soil. It is inconceivable that it is still possible to organise something like this in the 21st century – inconceivable after two catastrophic world wars and the threat of nuclear overkill.
This is only possible through “public relations” – how else could we forget what war really means? This disinformation must be made visible to stop the threat of war spreading to the whole of Europe. Peace negotiations worthy of the name must be held immediately.
First it is “solidarity” with Ukraine, then it is helmets.1 Later armoured transport vehicles, finally weapons and now long-range missiles2 … Will it be our own sons in the end?3 Will they also be sent to their deaths out of “solidarity”? Will Switzerland join in?4
PR – over 100 years in the service of war
For over 100 years, psychological research has been misused to get people ready for war.5 In 1917, the peaceful US population was asked to send soldiers to Europe to fight in a war that the country had nothing to do with. US President Woodrow Wilson’s election promise that the USA would remain neutral and not sacrifice its sons for foreign powers quickly became obsolete. The US establishment decided otherwise ...6
The names Edward Bernays and Walter Lippmann are representative of the Committee on Public Information (CPI), which was convened by President Wilson in 1917. Its task was to bring about acceptance of the entry into the war. With a nationwide network of recruited speakers, coordinated newspaper articles and financed advertisements as well as malicious posters, the entry into the war was prepared psychologically.7
“Propaganda” becomes “public relations”
After the First World War, the term “propaganda” was replaced by the neutral, technical term “public relations”, or PR for short.8 The manipulation methods of PR celebrated a triumphant advance in business and public relations.
Today, no war can be waged without PR. The massive influence on public awareness is enormous.9 The prehistory of the war in Yugoslavia in 1991 and 1999 are examples of how PR makes war possible.10
Massive use of PR in Europe
To prepare psychologically for an entry into war against Russia, NATO (Cognitive Warfare)11 works in synchronisation with increasingly totalitarian media legislation12 and PR campaigns in individual NATO and Partnership for Peace (PfP), countries. Attitudes in the population are manipulated insidiously depending on the situation. The techniques are manifold.11 One example: the acceptance of aggressive behaviour towards the governments and people of Russia or China is increasing. This is made possible by PR work. The mainstream media play a decisive role in this.13 Another example: the frequent repetition of martial statements by previously little-known politicians (such as Kiesewetter, Strack-Zimmermann, Hofreiter in Germany) are examples of how an aggressive attitude can be spread among the population. – It would be just as possible to quote de-escalating voices!14
The PR work with the Swiss mainstream media is similar. Politicians who share NATO positions are quickly listened to in the media – other voices are hardly given any room.15
“Uniform opinions”, “nudging”, “spins”
PR campaigns with their “uniform opinions”, their “nudging” and “spins” are occupying the minds of the Western population. – They are no longer as clumsy as 80 years ago, but more sophisticated, unconsciously subcutaneous, so to speak.16
With their minds full of worries and needs of everyday life, people take in “the news” from the mainstream media “to be in the know”. In everyday life, there is hardly any time to reflect on any issues. “It will be correct, more or less. Surely, they will know ... “
This is how the centuries-old fairy tale of the “cunning enemy”, who must be brought down by force of arms because he is so “evil”, can be retold today. On TV, in the free newspapers, on the radio, even in TV series or in VHS courses, we hear about what is “evil” and supposedly threatens us. Hardly anyone asks what is going on.17 Reasonable doubt should have no chance against the orchestrated public relations inputs – not even when a dissenting voice is heard.
Artificially generated emotions
Hardly anyone takes any notice of other opinions anymore. We are told that there is no choice but to “supply more weapons”, “to show strength”, etc. until we finally feel we must “strike back” or “finally shoot back”.18
Empirical knowledge about what wars ultimately mean for a society and the individual takes a back seat to artificially generated emotions. The real question of whether a nuclear war will help Ukrainian families after a large part of the country has already been destroyed and many fathers and sons have been torn to pieces and mutilated on the “field of honour” is not asked? Does it help if, in the end, Russian missiles hit European cities and Western missiles hit Russian cities?
Does the mainstream media tell us that there are people of flesh and blood living on both sides with their families, children, parents and grandparents? And when it comes to the big massacre? There is no coverage of this in the above-mentioned media – just as there is no coverage today from the trenches in Ukraine or Russia.
Where is the direct, unfiltered reporting in our media? Not “embedded”, as has been the case since the Vietnam War, i.e. filtered by the military leadership. Back then, the leadership realised that acceptance of their senseless war was declining, and students began to take to the streets.19
Nobody brings the dead back to life
After the war: What remains are the war-invalids, the widows, the orphans, the contaminated, the raped, the traumatised, the brutalised, a destroyed, contaminated country – and gigantic mountains of debt for the weapons purchases that have to be paid off …20
Nobody brings the dead back to life. The killed fathers are gone, the traumatised ones can no longer be fathers … Where does the daily food come from? Where is there a roof over their heads? Who has a medication against radiation sickness?
There are those responsible
There are those responsible. There are those who want war and have the power to instigate it. There are those who earn a great deal from this war and its consequences. Then there are politicians who do not fulfil their responsibilities.21
It is high time to lift the veil of PR to see clearly again and to look reality in the eye. Do we want to jeopardise our existence, that of our children and millions of other people for the profit, prestige and power of a few?
Wars can be stopped instantly
Wars are wanted and they are made. Orders are given. Someone gives the order for war. War preparations and wars can be stopped at any time, just as they are started. Negotiations can be held right now. Instantly. Even today. Even now!
There are enough examples of this.22
(Translation “Swiss Standpoint”)
1 The debate as to whether it was “only” permissible to supply helmets to Ukrainian soldiers forced the foot in the door of direct involvement in the conflict. It was clear that this was only the first step. And so, it was.2 By supplying long-range missiles (e.g. ATACMS), NATO is interfering directly in the war effort. These missiles can only be controlled via US satellites. In March, a wiretapped conversation was published in which three officers of the German Armed Forces discussed the deployment of German “Taurus” missiles in Ukraine. This was precisely about the “problem” of official NATO involvement.
3 States in the Baltic states and France are planning an official deployment of soldiers. Irrespective of this, there have been “mercenaries” and undeclared military specialists from Western states (France, Poland, USA, Sweden, UK, etc.) in Ukraine since the beginning of the war (and even before).
4 The Swiss Federal Council’s policy is dream-walking and leads the country directly into conflict via a NATO rapprochement (Amherd, Cassis). In addition, Switzerland is working intensively with PR to soften the concept of neutrality so that any NATO integration can be sold as “compatible with neutrality”. (cf. parliamentary group in the National Council, 30 May; in the Council of States, 1 June)
5 Cf. A systematic presentation of “war propaganda” can be found in: Jonas Tögel. Cognitive Kriegsführung. Neueste Manipulationstechniken als Waffengattung der NATO. Frankfurt 2023.
6 Cf. Howard Zinn provides a detailed account of the motives behind the US administration's “change of heart” in 1917. Eine Geschichte des amerikanischen Volkes. Hamburg 2013, p.349ff. Howard Zinn. A Peoples History of the United States. 1980
7 Cf. A good account of PR since 1917: Michael Lüders. Die scheinheilige Supermacht. Warum wir aus dem Schatten der USA heraustreten müssen. Munich 2021. p.48ff
8 While the term “propaganda” is clearly perceived negatively, the term “public relations” creates a neutral impression, although large PR groups are heavily involved in the area of war preparation. Cf. Jörg Becker / Mira Beham. Operation Balkan: Werbung für Krieg und Tod. Baden-Baden 2006
9 Cf. Johannes Menath. Moderne Propaganda. 80 Methoden der Meinungslenkung. Höhr-Grenzhausen 2022
10 Cf. Jörg Becker / Mira Beham. Operation Balkan: Werbung für Krieg und Tod. Baden-Baden 2006 and cf. Daniele Ganser. Illegale Kriege. Wie die NATO-Länder die UNO sabotieren. Eine Chronik von Kuba bis Syrien. Zürich 2016. p. 175–182.
11 Cf Jonas Tögel. Kognitive Kriegsführung. Neuste Manipulationstechniken als Waffengattung der NATO. Frankfurt 2023
12 The new media legislation in Germany and France now has totalitarian characteristics that contradict democratic freedoms. State language regulations and advertising campaigns have systematically stylised Russia and Putin as the enemy. The EU is also moving in this direction.
13 Cf. e.g. Hannes Hofbauer. Feindbild Russland. Wien 2016
14 Conspicous is the frequent reproduction of borderline statements against Russia by politicians such as Kiesewetter, Strack-Zimmermann or Hofreiter in contrast to the systematic omission of de-escalating voices even from recognised and renowned politicians such as Oskar Lafontaine, Klaus von Dohnanyi, Gerhard Schröder or high-ranking former military officers such as Harald Kujat or Erich Vad or top diplomats such as Michael von der Schulenburg or Hans von Sponeck in the mainstream media.
15 Individual members of the Council of States in Switzerland who profile themselves in foreign policy with NATO positions and thus cause lasting damage to Switzerland's neutral position are repeatedly given a broad audience in the Swiss mainstream media (e.g. NZZ, 3 June 2024).
16 Cf. Johannes Menath. Moderne Propaganda. 80 Methoden der Meinungslenkung. Höhr-Grenzhausen 2022 or Judith Barben. Spin Docters im Bundeshaus. Gefährdungen der direkten Demokratie durch Manipulation und Propaganda. Baden 2009
17 Cf. Hannes Hofbauer. Feindbild Russland. Wien 2016
18 Exemplified by Romain Rolland. Clerambault. Geschichte eines freien Gewissens im Krieg. Paris 1920
19 Due to unrest among the US population caused by the crimes of the US Army in Vietnam (Agent Orange, area bombings, My Lai massacre, etc.), the US government began to restrict reporting from war zones.
20 German taxpayers had to pay off the war debts (reparation payments) from the First World War until 1988! This money was used to pay the debts of the victorious warring powers for weapons purchases and reconstruction.
21 As a consequence of the Second World War, the Nuremberg Trials gave rise to the “Nuremberg Principles”. It should be possible to come to terms with wars legally and those responsible should be held accountable.
22 Examples are the many separate peace or ceasefire agreements that are concluded with individual warring factions during ongoing wars for “tactical” reasons. There it is no problem for those in power to make peace with a “mortal enemy” at short notice.