The power of propaganda

Russian soldiers have been lied to by their government, and those lies are at the heart of the war in Ukraine

NPR reporter Eleanor Beardsley, who is based in France and is now helping cover the war in Ukraine, posted this fascinating but frustrating tweet and thread Thursday:

Incredible testimony on BFMTV from this mayor of Melitopol who was kidnapped for several days by the Russians. He says they had no idea what’s going on. They told him we’re here to get the Nazis – he said I’ve been in this town 30 years and I’ve never met one…. then they said pic.twitter.com/T8aL2DjZwH

— Eleanor Beardsley (@ElBeardsley) March 31, 2022

Other tweets in the thread explain how Russian soldier have also been convinced to believe lies about how Russian-speaking Ukrainians (95 percent of the population speaks Russian) are being treated badly, and how military veterans have been spat upon. None of that is true, according to the mayor of Melitopol, who is featured in Beardsley’s tweets.

In other words, President Vladimir Putin’s policy of criminalizing independent truth-telling media in his country means that too many Russians believe the lies and propaganda propagated by Putin and his lackeys.

Here’s what you can do: 

Do we have a propaganda problem in the U.S.? A majority of Republicans in the U.S. still believe the lie that the 2020 presidential election was rigged, despite all evidence to the contrary. What other falsehoods exist in your school, among your classmates? Are there urban myths or legends you could check on? What is the impact of these lies and people’s belief in them? There’s a popular canard making the rounds that schools have installed litter boxes in bathrooms for students who “identify as cats.” How do these myths, lies and urban legends start? And why do they persist despite clear evidence to the contrary? Who’s your expert at school who can shed light on the persistence and power of propaganda? Find that person and interview them.

‘Almost back to normal’

Strong job growth may signal end of COVID economic disruptions

The U.S. Labor Department reported late last week that the country’s economy added 431,000 new jobs in March, signaling that the U.S. economy may finally be recovering from the disruptions caused by the COVID pandemic, which shut down many businesses starting in March 2020.

“Two years ago, every sector was at least disrupted if not completely shut down. But we’ve had such a quick recovery that things are almost back to normal,” Jane Oates, president of the employment-focused nonprofit WorkingNation and a former Labor Department official, told the Washington Post.

There are still 11.3 million for Americans wanting to work or for visiting workers to fill.

“Although today’s job report was a little softer than expected, it still paints a picture of a steaming labor market,” Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Global Investors told Fox Business News. “In fact, the final vestiges of COVID-19 are close to being fully eradicated from the economic data.”

Here’s what you can do: 

There should be a lot of summer jobs for high school students to fill, and there should be a better opportunity for your parents to find work — or better work — if they’re looking.

Are summer jobs still a thing for the students in your school? How many of your classmates will be looking for work? How many already work year-round or close to it? What are their reasons for doing so? How many need to work to support their families? What kind of work is available in your town? How can a high school student find summer work that might prepare them better for something they’d like to do for the rest of their lives? For example, does a local media company hire journalism interns? Would they consider a high school student?