Decoding Propaganda Terminology

An ongoing series exposing the true meanings behind some of the most widely used terminology in the political and cultural discourse.

To better understand politics and culture, we first have to understand how language is often employed for propaganda. That is what this Decoding Propaganda Terminology series is meant to do.

Disclaimer: I’m sharing many of these terms as I learn about them in real-time.
(If you’d like to contribute, drop your suggestions in the comments section.)

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OUR DEMOCRACY:

Commonplace Definition:
“Democracy” is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives. Essentially, it is the control of an organization or group by the majority of its members. The individuals, in this case, are empowered to have a voice and a say on particular societal matters.

Decoded Definition:
“Democracy” or “Our Democracy” is a term newly operationalized to refer to the governance by the consensus of institutions rather than by the consensus of individuals (i.e. the governed). Simply put, it is the empowerment of institutions to the detriment of individuals. (See explainer video below.)

So, essentially, if you advocate for free speech, or your voting rights, or believe that specific institutions readily censor opposition or rig elections, based on this decoded definition, you would be viewed as a “threat to democracy.”

As Mike Benz, executive director at the Foundation for Freedom Online, puts it in plain terms:

“Having a consensus of institutions be your definition of democracy means that if there is a consensus of individuals that overturns or overrules or tries to resist the consensus of institutions, then those individuals—that majority of the population—are actually attacking democracy. It’s a ‘threat to democracy’ if individuals vote against institutions.”

This is why in recent years, across corporate news media, we’ve repetitively heard various forms of the refrain “this is a threat to our democracy,” or “this is an attack on our democracy,” or “this is extremely dangerous to our democracy,” signaling that the consensus of individuals on particular issues are in direct opposition to the consensus of institutions such as the State Department, the Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community, NGOs, the Democratic National Committee, the Republican National Committee, and many others throughout society.

Quick Explainer:

Executive Director for Foundation for Freedom Online Mike Benz gives a primer on the redefinition of the term “Democracy.”

See The Term In Use:

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