Chapter 13: The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Anything but the Truth
Opened books, some face down, some upwards, litter the bedroom floor. The books, spaced apart like land mines, are generally old and worn. Scuttling from one book to another on hands and knees, Claudia looks more like a demented hysteric imitating a bee than a person doing research.
When she settles at one of her literary flowers she hovers above it. Resting on her elbows and knees she scribbles on her note pad while her butt waves slowly in the air. After writing down the information she needs, she buzzes over to another book only to hover and write again.
She has been engaged in this task since the break of dawn and has not stopped throughout the morning. A few food wrappers found amidst the books are the remains of her paltry food intake for this day. Even when munching on potato chips and granola bars Claudia continues her migration from book to book reading and making mental notes.
The pollen she is collecting is information to help her answer the big question. After a day of collecting notes, she plans on letting it all come together in an evening of contemplation. She hopes by the end of the day she will be able to put into words what her heart has been feeling. She hopes she will finally be able to express to herself exactly why she left Austin. Once that is accomplished she hopes to present the honey of her research to Austin.
Claudia finds the entire process of research extremely invigorating. When conducting research Claudia imagines herself a detective solving a difficult case. She treats each book she reads, each article she finds, as a valuable clue. She handles her reading materials with care as if to prevent contaminating the evidence. Even the habit she has of hovering over books is used to prevent her from over handling the pages and sullying them with her finger prints.
While most of her college friends dreaded term papers and research projects, Claudia reveled in them. Instead of waiting to the last minute, she found it almost impossible to resist beginning research the day it was assigned. Most of her friends considered Claudia’s manic devotion to research more of a compulsion, than a love.
Though Claudia regarded most people’s antipathy towards research as a sign of laziness, she did realize her zest for investigation was extreme. Some of Claudia’s favorite times with Austin were when he asked her to find some information or included her investigative skills when putting together a presentation. Whenever she needed a lift, or felt the least bit distant from Austin, she would always ask him to give her an assignment so they could work together.
Today’s efforts were proving to be quite a revelation for Claudia. As she anxiously scribbled down some last notes she was sure she had already put together a lot of the puzzle. Sitting up, she looked through her note pad and began circling and numbering specific sections of notes.
This morning’s inquiry had begun with the early 20th century writings of Le Bon, Tarde, Tonnies and even Freud regarding the ideas of early social psychology, and its relationship with public relations. In particular, Claudia was interested in reading all she could find on the differences and similarities between the crowd and the public.
Soon Claudia found herself attempting to put together a complete social history of public relations from the 1880′s on. Reviewing her notes it seemed to Claudia she could view the history in terms of several eras. Each time span appeared to be defined by attitudes and goals of public relations and how they related to both government and business.
Claudia was often fascinated by the way Austin flitted between business and government sometimes presenting them as oppositional forces and sometimes as allies. The history she was constructing did appear to validate the fact that the relationship between business and government has always vacillated somewhere between friend and foe. The fate of business and government seemed intertwined and though dependent on one another they always appeared to jostle for dominance. The prize of their battle has always been public confidence, whether that be as voter-patriot, or consumer-laborer.
Writing short notes on little pieces of paper and then placing them in vertical rows on the floor Claudia attempted to assemble a chronology of public relations. Her first era was rather large incorporating all the years from the 1880′s until WWI. The first world war made up the second era. The third era spanned from the end of WWI until the depression. The fourth epoch went from the Depression through WWII. The years between WWII and the war in Vietnam made up the fifth time span. The social revolutions of the 60′s made up the sixth, and the years up through the latest round of social upheaval made up the seventh.
Staring at the notes for each public relations era Claudia tried to capture the dominant traits of each time period in as few words as possible. She hoped this concise mental flow chart would make it easy for her to retrieve the basic chronology whenever she needed it.
The first era up until the first world war, appeared to be dominated by a swift growth in industry. This time period gave birth to the first huge corporations. These mammoth industries were formed from ingenuity and exploitation. The winners in each industry usually had brutal working conditions, intolerance for unions, and strong political connections. The lords of industry were the popular targets of the emerging field of journalism, and therefore, usually were disliked by the common man. In response to the ill will of the public, corporations began hiring public information specialists who told the industries side of the story.
The general public saw WWI as a rich man’s war, being fought for money and power. The government started the Committee for Public Information (CPI) to win support for US involvement in the war. It seemed to Claudia that the CPI was the first truly public relations organization. The CPI succeeded in its efforts to sway public sentiments through many of the techniques which became the backbone of modern public relations.
The government hired influential and well respected citizens such as doctors to stand up at public places like movie theaters to give stirring prepared speeches arguing for our involvement in the war. Each week these supposedly spontaneous outpouring of patriotism speeches were given in the thousands. These individuals referred to as the “four minute men” were quite successful at swaying the opinions of their neighbors.
The CPI, needing to alter public opinion quickly, came to the conclusion that influencing the heart was easier and swifter than influencing the mind. They, therefore, bombarded the public with posters and photographs spawning feelings of fear and patriotism through images of good versus evil. In these images mothers were raped and spies were everywhere. In order to suppress information running counter to their propaganda the government passed the Sedition Act of 1918 making it illegal to question the war, or government policy. Claudia recognized this law as the birth of the “national security” decoy.
The CPI also began distributing the National School Service Bulletin which they referred to as a propaganda paper for children designed to increase patriotism. The government also produced a number of propaganda movies which they pressured American theaters to show and coupled them with popular American movies to be shown internationally.
After the war US businesses used and expanded upon the techniques developed by the CPI during the war to improve their image. Corporate giants such as GE and AT&T produced promo films to be shown in schools and businesses. They began advertising departments whose sole goal was to win the hearts of the American consumer. They approached leaders in the burgeoning field of social psychology to learn how best to influence the public. Corporations flexed their muscles and through price wars and mergers became huge monopolies successfully ridding themselves of competition.
Through advertising dollars and the creation of magazine and newspaper chains they began to generate favorable, and suppress unfavorable, press. The government assisted the business world’s campaign to control the media by passing bills such as the National Radio Act of 1927 which gave commercial radio an unfair advantage over public radio. The demise of each public radio station and independent newspaper removed a possible dissenting voice from the optimistic gospel of free enterprise which was being disseminated by corporate America.
The campaign worked rather well and by the late 20′s Americans were spending far more than they were making. The movies of the 20′s showed extravagant lifestyles which a growing number of Americans tried to emulate even if it meant high credit bills and bad banking practices. Though the corporate-owned media depicted everyone as being wealthy, the majority of American’s were poverty stricken.
During the Depression and New Deal years the government won back the confidence of the people through a savvy combination of public relations and social welfare programs. FDR used the media to his advantage in a number of ways. His ease and congeniality with the press earned him a lot of positive press. He used the radio as no president before breeding an air of familiarity with the public through his fireside chats.
The government portrayed itself as the public’s savior through multiple documentaries and federally commissioned photographs showing the plight of the forgotten common man. The government used public polls to learn of their desires and opinions and to monitor the progress of their social programs. The government, championing the rights of the average worker, assisted in the growth and political power of unions and passed laws protecting workers rights and well being.
The business world, obviously wounded by the depression, put increasing amounts of money into their public relations departments. Angry with the hits they were taking from the government, and concerned that the growing positive sentiment towards socialistic ideas and programs could put an end to free enterprise, the corporate world made selling capitalism their number one goal.
The 1936 New York World’s fair went a long way towards accomplishing this, showing how modern technology and American know how were the promise of the future. Corporate America once again made a marketing assault on school children with reading materials and film strips showing an affluent America built on the shoulders of industry. Newspapers carried infomercials such as the comic strip “Pocketbook of Knowledge” showing the limits of government and the future of invention.
The rise of Hitler and of Communism allowed corporate America to indirectly attack the government’s social programs and socialism as a threat to American democracy. This strategy, of course, benefited greatly by the on set of WWII. During the mid-thirties and through the war corporations used soap operatic radio shows of typical American families to show the failing of socialism and the wisdom of free enterprise. These programs constantly warned of the presence of spies who were spreading their socialistic ideas to undermine and destroy the very democracy our young boys were defending over seas.
Though Claudia felt she needed no help in summarizing the role of public relations since WWII she decided to mentally note a few of its dominant aspects. She noted after WWII both the government and corporate America were winners. The military becoming one of corporate America’s biggest and most affluent customers strengthened the ties between the US government and corporate America.
By the end of the war almost all of the media, from radio, to newspaper, to TV, was owned by corporate interests. Elected government officials becoming increasingly dependent on corporate funds and media coverage for lengthening their political tenure began wooing campaign contributions through promises, deals and assisting in the passing of pro-business legislation.
Corporate America chipped away at all social programs they deemed threatening both ideologically and practically. Social programs fostered the idea of entitlement which could only be accomplished through an increase in socialism and a decrease of capitalism. These social programs also fostered the growth of unions and workers rights which directly reduced the profit margin of every business.
Shortly after WWII, leaders in the public relations field suggested that corporations improve their image by taking over many of the social programs instituted by the government. Reluctantly big business did include many perks including health, dental, insurance, retirement, vacation and workman compensation plans to their menu. Their unspoken goal was to first make workers loyal and dependent and then slowly water down and someday remove all these expensive worker benefits and rights. In the meantime they were content to take away some of the government’s might and remove any lingering possibility of our society moving away from capitalism.
Looking over her notes it appeared to Claudia that both business and government used the field of public relations to manipulate and control the public. Times of social change were spawned when events allowed a sector of the public which was previously ignored or underestimated to temporarily win some rights.
In the beginning of corporate capitalism the lords of industry felt only the elite and upper class mattered. Yet, underestimating the effect of journalism on the political environment, they soon found themselves forced to share their wealth with a new but very narrow middle class. The Depression forced big business to respect the rights and intelligence of immigrants and lower caste laborers. The transition out of WWII forced big business to expand the increasingly educated middle class even further. The revolutions of the sixties showed them they had once again underestimated entire sectors of the population, and they quickly scrambled to at least pretend to meet the needs of women, young adults and blacks.
Big business and the government’s desire for power and control motivated them to try and control those they viewed as a threat. Their means of asserting control was through the use of public relations. Yet, since so much of their energy was spent jockeying for position between themselves they always underestimated entire groups they deemed harmless. Every social movement just inspired them to increased their degree and range of control.
Claudia broke herself from the fervor of her investigation to reflect on what she had been summarizing. She was now confident she was well on her way to being able to put into words why she left Austin. Her initial thought was that she hadn’t really left Austin as much as his world. She really didn’t mind what he did, as much as the history of public relations, its goal and the way it generally viewed and treated “the public”.
Claudia stood up feeling a need to move, to break away. She wanted to distance herself from the mine field of books strewn on the floor. Only when she left the bedroom did she feel like she could breath freely. She felt like her mind was finally able to begin speaking for her heart. Yet, both her mind and heart were now racing far too fast.
She knew leaving the apartment was too risky. She needed to continue thinking and if she were to leave the apartment she would likely loose her focus or find herself being distracted by bumping into someone she knew. Though not particularly hungry Claudia decided she needed some sustenance to continue her thoughts. She began preparations on a light meal of soup and salad. While stirring the soup she began to fade back into her thoughts.
In many ways she found the world of public relations as fascinating and exhilarating as did Austin. Yet, no matter how much the industry had evolved, public relations was still about control through manipulation. It was still about treating the masses as guinea pigs and never giving them credit for being able to make a right decision. As the techniques of persuasion become more subtle and sophisticated it seemed likely future generations would become increasingly incapable of critical thinking, of seeing the truth behind the commercials.
Suddenly Claudia found herself singing, “whip it, whip it good”. It was the catch phrase in a song by a band called DEVO a new-wave band who railed against the dehumanizing effects of technology and commercialism. It was obvious to Claudia why this song popped into her mind. The band’s name DEVO stood for de-evolution, and their cynical premise was that man was not progressing or evolving but actually regressing.
This was Claudia’s fear of the world of public relations. She felt the surreptitious ways of public persuasion were effectively weakening people’s ability to think. Public relations gurus have been bragging for decades that they create truth, that they can arouse or dissipate even the most basic of feelings. Countless times she had heard someone say, “Tell a lie often enough and it becomes truth”.
The puzzle was beginning to fall into place. Claudia could see the gathering gloom of her coming storm of thought. Knowing it would be difficult to sit and think, she began clearing out the cabinets to prepare for a master cleaning. Claudia always ruminated best while in motion, and her favorite mindless activity was a good old-fashioned house cleaning.
Since the soup was about finished she refrained from starting to scour and rinse. Instead she rolled up her sleeves and prepared the entire kitchen area for her upcoming assault. Cabinets were emptied, furniture was moved, buckets, brushes, gloves and soaps were assembled and ready like military hardware before the siege.
Even while she ate her minestrone soup and green salad she found it impossible to stay seated. Every minute or so, she got up and made another preparation or retrieved another tool for her upcoming task.
Claudia cleaned and thought until both her mind and body could do no more. By the time she retired to bed she had cleaned the entire apartment. Every nook and cranny of floor, window, appliance, light fixture and wall had been sanitized. A person with a magnifying glass would have been hard pressed to find a single millimeter of open or enclosed space untouched by cleaner or cloth.
She fell asleep to the smell of various cleaning solutions, content with a job well done. Claudia wasn’t quite sure if her thoughts had been as thorough, but she was willing to wait till morning to evaluate her research project.