Acceptance and Resistance in the Age of Propaganda
For purpose-driven leaders and organizations, acceptance can be a bitter pill. But despite all the lying, vitriol, and bullying that landed us with a fascist* in the Oval Office—his sycophants and minions fanning out across the land—we must accept and quickly adjust to the tectonic shift in power that’s underway. Despite a tornado of propaganda, it’s essential that those of us who believe facts matter accept this new reality.
Only then will we be able to act effectively. Modeled somewhat off a piece I wrote decades ago (“The Ten Commandments of Doing Business in the Soviet Union”), the communications principles below offer guidance.
1. Manage Your Exposure to Viral Propaganda
The core goal of propaganda is to overwhelm and displace all competing narratives and mindsets. Propaganda narrows how people think, talk, and behave. It abhors diversity and sees it as transgressive. Resisting it is a form of resistance. None of us are immune. Limit your exposure to the absolute minimum to stay sufficiently informed.
2. Don't Become a Transmission Vector
Communicate without repeating the falsehoods or deceptions you’re trying to correct. Follow the model of ‘corrections’ in newspapers: “The name of the composer was spelled incorrectly. The proper spelling is Tchaikovsky.”
3. Check Yourself
Check in, evaluate, and see if you’re changing your behavior or language without even realizing it. Ask your friends and colleagues. Fear of intimidation can lead us to preemptively censor ourselves. Thus, we ourselves do the bidding of the censor.
4. Choose Your Words Carefully
Language is powerful. Neither disinformation nor misinformation are accidental. Distortion is a strategic tool calculated to maintain power, intimidate others, and control narratives. Use your language to correct, rebalance, or replace the narrative. Don’t tone it down to abide by a false story; that too distorts reality.
5. Stay with the Herd
There is power not only in numbers but also in witnessing and being witnessed. Have two people, rather than the standard one, sign important letters. Co-author materials with board members or other senior leaders. When you anticipate it being a tough meeting, take a colleague; no need to go it alone. Circling wolves will wait to attack until one member of the herd strays. Don’t wander.
6. Know Your Values
Stay grounded, seek confirmation, and ask for support from people you trust. Effectively adapting to changed circumstances does not mean giving up who you are. Humans have tremendous agency. If helping others is core to who you are, remember the flight announcement: “In the event of a loss of cabin pressure, put your oxygen mask on first before helping others.”
7. Facts Matter
That people may willfully ignore a fact does not make it any less true. No matter how insistent someone is on a ledge ten floors up that humans can fly, I’m betting on gravity every time. Commit to evidence-based communication and tell stories to help frame messages and influence decisions. But don’t stretch the truth and give people an opening to undermine you.
8. Emotions Also Matter
Being right isn’t enough. Although perhaps bookended by facts, the decisions people make are often driven by the power of feelings. Find the balance to connect with people emotionally—to reach and affect them in powerful ways. Always give people something essential to remember.
9. Be prepared
Run scenarios. Play through how your people, your work, your organization, and your partners might be hurt. Envision challenges that you never imagined before, and work out practical solutions in detail, with roles and responsibilities clearly understood. Anticipate deliberate intimidation tactics. Know the risk tolerance of your executives, board members, and stakeholders. Be sure your internal and external communications are aligned and thoughtfully sequenced. If you don’t have an updated crisis communications plan, do it now.
10. Be Protected
Know where to go for legal advice before you need it. But remember, lawyers are paid to be conservative. They’re not communications specialists. Lawyers are the last line of defense, after you’ve lost control of the narrative.
Remember, whether you’re a CEO, an Executive Director, or a Communications Manager, don’t go silent. Your voice matters, now more than ever. Acceptance, yes; silence, no.
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*According to General Mark A. Miley, who was appointed by Trump during his first term to serve as the Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, and as reported to Bob Woodward: “He is the most dangerous person ever…now I realize he’s a total fascist. He is now the most dangerous person to this country. A fascist to the core.”
And as I tweeted in November 2016:
