Hey what’s up Thinkers! Kathy Gibbens here…
Let’s start off by doing a quick review of a fallacy we covered earlier this season, the Appeal to Group Identity. I encourage you to hit pause real quick and see if you can remember what the Appeal to Group Identity is! An Appeal to Group Identity says that since you’re a part of a certain group, you should automatically do or believe XYZ.
The question to ask yourself when you’re facing an Appeal to Group identity is this: “Is it really true that I HAVE to do this just b/c I belong to this group?”
If you want to review or hear more about this fallacy, go back & check out Episode 122.
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We are continuing our miniseries on Propaganda Tactics today by talking about Projection. Projection happens when someone attributes their own thoughts, feelings, actions or qualities to another person. It's like seeing your own characteristics, emotions or actions in someone else, even when they may not actually have those traits, feelings or actions. It can sometimes be a way for people to avoid facing their own issues or insecurities by putting them onto others. And as a Propaganda tactic, the person accuses their opponent of using the same dirty tricks or committing the same misdeeds they themselves are guilty of!
Here’s a simple example of what Projection can sound like: Your friend is presenting her paper in class today. You always feel nervous when you have to present, so you’re sure she’s feeling nervous too. When you see her you say, “Ok, you must be so nervous, take a deep breath and just remember that you’ll be fine!” Now, just because YOU feel nervous when you have to present, does that automatically mean that your friend also feels nervous when she’s presenting? No, it doesn’t. It’s an assumption where you’re projecting how you would feel onto the other person.
Here’s another example of projection: You and your cousin Sarah are working on an art project together. Sarah is known for being very critical of her own artwork and often feels like her pieces aren't good enough. As you both work on your project, Sarah looks at your art and says, "Wow, your drawing is so messy and unimpressive." Ok, ouch, right? It sounds like some hurtful criticism! However, in this situation, Sarah might be projecting her own self-doubt and critical thoughts onto your artwork. She sees her own insecurities about her art in your work, even if your drawing is perfectly fine. Sarah's comment is her projecting her own feelings about her abilities and it’s not an accurate assessment of your art. Now, these examples have been innocent enough, so how is Projection considered to be Propaganda?
Consider this example: Adolf Hitler used projection in the late 1930s and early 1940s when he wrongly accused the Jews of a plot to brutally dominate Europe and then the world. Were the Jews actually concocting such a plot? No! However, Hitler himself was the one who was plotting to brutally dominate Europe and then the world. That’s projection and as we’ve discussed on this podcast previously, Hitler created a lot of propaganda to make this projection stick in the minds of the German people.
The problem behind Projection as a propaganda tactic is that it deflects blame away from the misdeeds of the person who’s actually committing them! We’ve all seen examples in cartoons or movies of someone who steals something, but points at another person and says, “There they are, they’re getting away!” and when everyone chases after the innocent person, the guilty person runs in the other direction. That’s a classic case of projection. Interestingly, this propaganda tactic is successful because studies have shown that even when it’s proven that someone has committed Projection, the spotlight rarely lands back on the person who originally committed the wrong action.
We’ve seen a huge example of Projection happen here in the US the last few election cycles. Back in 2016 when Trump won, the Democrats were saying that there was election fraud and that Trump was an illegitimate president. And then after the 2020 election, a lot of Republicans felt that there was election fraud and that Biden is an illegitimate president and the Democrats are now accusing them of being “election deniers” even though they just made those exact claims in the last election. Y’all, it’s just ridiculous. What both sides need to do is bring real proof of their claims and the other side needs to be willing to look at the proof honestly and then we could figure out what the truth actually is. But, do we think that’ll happen? Sadly, not likely.
Question to ask yourself if you think someone is Projecting is this: “Are they guilty of that themselves?” *repeat*
Remember: When you learn HOW to think, you will no longer fall prey to those who are trying to tell you what THEY want you to think and it all starts with asking one simple question: “Is that really true?”
