Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Break Down Which Pieces Of Propaganda Did The Most Damage

Nearly 30 years ago, Rwanda's Hutu population initiated perhaps the most successful genocide campaign in recent history, systematically murdering more than 800,000 members of the Tutsi population over a three-month period.

The period before the genocide began was marked by heightened political tensions. Hutus and their supporters would take to radio broadcasts to brand Tutsis "cockroaches," which normalized animosity toward them. It was successful propaganda that altered the lives of millions.

This isn't the first time that people have used propaganda for nefarious reasons – far from it. People shared their thoughts with us after Redditor fitboy15 asked the online community,

"What piece of propaganda did the most damage?"

"That Oxycontin..."

"That OxyContin had a low rate of dependency."

No-Discussion6480

If Dopesick didn't send you down a rabbit hole learning about the Sackler family, then you did something wrong.

"Kids lost..."

"In the 90s, child abduction fear porn was all the rage on the nightly news. And they were always the 1 in a million, crazy stories with horrific deaths and would play weekly. Chris Hanson's "To Catch a Predator" didn't help."

"However, these kidnappings were extremely rare in reality. Kids lost almost all unsupervised play time, which as it turns out is very helpful for learning how to socialize."

[deleted]

Not to mention most kidnappings were done by close relatives of the child rather than complete strangers.

"When Coca Cola..."

"When Coca Cola paid off doctors to say that fat was what caused fatness rather than sugar. This has destroyed the health of generations. It was the total converse of the truth, pushed to all American children (and many internationally) about their health."

andycambridge

There's a looming crisis in Mexico just because of this. The commoner is so brainwashed about sugar that the drink is almost consumed ritualistically/ceremoniously.

This dude!

“Dr.” Andrew Wakefield and his false study."

Xboarder84

People talk a lot about the harms Wakefield did by spreading distrust in vaccines, and that's huge and unforgivable, but the harms he caused to the autistic community are huge and unforgivable too. So much unnecessary hatred.

"When big tobacco companies..."

"When big tobacco industries made doctors endorse cigarettes."

Sandracotta

Made? They gave them kickbacks and direct payments.

Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok's 1968 letter..."

"Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok's 1968 letter in New England Journal of Medicine talking of Chinese restaurant syndrome caused by MSG without any scientific evidence."

doesntcareatall

Indeed, this added a lot of content to preexisting stigma towards East Asians. However blinded experiments could not prove his claims.

"It might not be the worst..."

"It might not be the worst, but when the woman spilled hot coffee on herself from McDonald's. She ended up with 3rd degree burns because the coffee temperature wasn't regulated correctly and McDonald's paid people to make fun of her, and people still do to this day."

mksports

Her burns were so severe that her labia were fused together. She suffered horrifying, debilitating and expensive burns and she was mocked and painted as irresponsible. All she wanted from McDonalds was the cost of her medical expenses, too.

"The United States..."

"The United States FDA Food Pyramid."

yawmush

One of the biggest lies ever told. Grain is more important than vegetables? Yeah, right.

"The War..."

"The War on Drugs."

[deleted]

"Perhaps..."

"Perhaps not the most damaging, but certainly a vile example… when Pope Benedict XVI told the people of sub-Saharan Africa that condoms would actually make the HIV/AIDS crisis worse."

PosterNutbag

It was largely rooted in a belief that birth control goes against the word of god. "Go forth and multiply" taken to the extreme.

Yeah... if you walked away from these not feeling at least a bit ambivalent about the human race, then I don't know what to tell you.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Michael Fishman
@reelmfishman/Instagram

'Roseanne' Star Urges 'Compassion' With Wake-Up Call Video About Who Actually Uses SNAP Benefits

Michael Fishman, the 44-year-old actor, writer, producer, and director who started playing the character of DJ Connor on the 1980s sitcom Roseanne at just 6 years old, took to his social media recently to counter the narrative being pushed by conservative talking heads like Matt Walsh about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Drawing on his own on-screen and real life experiences, Fishman called for compassion instead of judgment.

Keep ReadingShow less
Zohran Mamdani; Screenshot of Elon Musk
Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images; The Joe Rogan Experience

Elon Musk Roasted For His Sputtering Explanation For Why Zohran Mamdani Is A 'Swindler'

Billionaire Elon Musk was widely mocked after he couldn't explain why he believes New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is a "charismatic swindler" and struggled to form a coherent sentence during an appearance on conservative pundit Joe Rogan's podcast.

Musk appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience just before Tuesday's election result, which saw Mamdani, a democratic socialist, beat back the establishment despite months of racist and Islamophobic attacks from the right-wing.

Keep ReadingShow less
Tomi Lahren
Theo Wargo/Getty Images

Tomi Lahren Just Warned Democrats Not To Flee To 'Great Red Cities'—And Everyone Had The Same Question

People are raising their eyebrows after conservative influencer Tomi Lahren went viral with a warning for Democrats not to flee to "our great red cities."

Lahren's post came in response to the significant losses Republicans faced around the country following Tuesday's elections.

Keep ReadingShow less

People Explain What Happened To Significant Others Who Cheated And Then Dated Their Affair Partner

Whether we've been cheated on before, most of us hold pretty strong opinions about the people of the world who choose to cheat instead of simply ending the relationship.

But there's a particular ring of treachery reserved for the people who not only get caught having an affair, but who then choose their affair partner over the person they committed to.

Keep ReadingShow less