Types of Propaganda

Even propaganda is categorized based on the methods it uses to shape its argument.  These categories are traditionally labelled as white, black, and gray propaganda.  While there are discrepancies in the way these terms are defined, Garth S. Jowett and Victoria O’Donnell (Propaganda and Persuasion) use the following labels:

“White propaganda comes from a source that is identified correctly, and the information in the message tends to be accurate…Although what listeners hear is reasonably close to the truth, it is presented in a manner that attempts to convince the audience that the sender is the ‘good guy’ with the best ideas and political ideology.”

“Black propaganda is credited to a false source, and it spreads lies, fabrications, and deceptions.”

“Gray propaganda is somewhere between white and black propaganda.  The source may or may not be correctly identified, and the accuracy of information is uncertain.”

While these definitions are in themselves fairly ambiguous, one could argue that all forms of persuasion fall into the category of white propaganda at the very least, extending the general definition of propaganda to anything that argues an opinion.