A seminal and controversial figure in the history of political thought and public relations, Edward Bernays pioneered the scientific technique of shaping and manipulating public opinion, which he famously dubbed the "engineering of consent". During World War I, he was an integral part of the US Committee on Public Information, or CPI, a powerful propaganda apparatus that was mobilized to package, advertise, and sell the war to the American people as one that would "Make the World Safe for Democracy".

You may not know Edward Bernays, but Edward Bernays knows you. His 1923 classic Crystallizing Public Opinion set down the principles that corporations and government have used to influence and manipulate public attitudes over the past century, and the mass media continues that practice today. This seminal work on how public opinion is created and shaped, offers a glimpse into the world of propaganda and advertising.

"Propaganda," penned by Edward Bernays in 1928, delves into the mechanics of shaping public opinion. Bernays, often dubbed the "father of public relations," argues that propaganda is an essential tool for guiding public thought in a democratic society. He outlines strategies for manipulating public perception, drawing from psychological and sociological principles. While his work is credited with pioneering modern public relations, it has also drawn criticism for its potential to be used for manipulation and control.

First published in 1928, Edward Bernays’ Propaganda may be the single most important work on public relations ever to appear. Bernays (1891-1995), a nephew of Sigmund Freud, shaped the management of public opinion at a time when the modern media were beginning to take their present shape. Propaganda today has a negative connotation, but Bernays uses the term in a neutral sense. Writing in the 1920s, he redefined what he called the “new propaganda” as public relations—a name that has stuck ever since.

Propaganda, an influential book written by Edward L. Bernays in 1928, incorporated the literature from social science and psychological manipulation into an examination of the techniques of public communication. Propaganda explored the psychology behind manipulating masses and the ability to use symbolic action and propaganda to influence politics, effect social change, and lobby for gender and racial equality.