The Smith Mundt Act

The Smith Mundt Act, also known as the U.S. Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948, was the authorization for propaganda activities conducted by the U.S. Department of State only for foreign audiences. This act was proposed by Carl E. Mundt in January 1945, but was not passed until 3 years later in 1948 by President Truman. This act is sometimes called "public diplomacy". Public Diplomacy defined as any government-sponsored effort aimed at communicating directly with foreign publics to establish a dialogue that supports the government’s strategic objectives. 

64 years later the Smith Mundt Act was amended and transformed in 2012. This idea was introduced by Congressman Mac Thornberry. It gave the State Department, Secretary of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors, permission to use propaganda for foreign audiences as well as in the United States. Propaganda is defined as “information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view.”

This amendment has the power to affect society as a whole, especially the upcoming generations. Since propaganda is used primarily for political causes, this act has the potential to really affect the way people that people choose who they want to vote for. Also, if one candidate decides to use propaganda in order to try to win, then other candidates will feel like they need to use some sort of propaganda in order to try to win. 

Although I’m sure Mac Thornberry has good intentions when he transformed the Smith Mundt Act, I like Carl Mundt’s version better.