“Propaganda is persuading people to make up their minds while withholding some of the facts from them.” â€â€ÂHarold Evans
Mr. Evans is right – and propaganda surrounds us everywhere. The latest example – in this researcher’s readings – is Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton.
A well written, enjoyable, even inspiring book — at times.
At times, I say, because propaganda abounds. Nearly every fifth page has some moral shot taken at Hamilton and other founders, even as everything in between seems to be on their side. For instance, Hamilton is now coming out of the closet thanks to Chernow. Yes, pathetic as it is. He has grossly taken some comments of Hamilton’s to John Laurens, and Lafayette and decided to put a twist on them to imply the trio were gay.
This took effort. Consider, he admits up front that we must proceed with caution, for not a one of the letters were improper. That does not deter Chernow, but only gives him an ‘out’ for his gross propaganda, even as he presses forward, time after time, acting as if he never made such a statement, as he uses these most proper letters to prove his case that this married man, and devout Christian was gay.
Likewise, his book is full of quotation on Jefferson from none other than Founder hater, propagandist, and anti-Christian mudslinger, the late Fawn Brodie. The fact missing, the source of the slight, 26 times, on Jefferson being Brodie and her suspect background. Well, I haven’t counted how many times he quoted another ‘unbiased’ source, Ellis. Ellis is the one who begins his biography on Washington, “His Excellency,” by insinuating that Washington was a mass murderer in his youth.
I returned the book. And I wouldn’t dare read his treatise on Jefferson – as some of my friends have.
No surprise, Ellis endorsed Chernow’s book, even though Chernow has Washington’s character as beyond reproach. This is how these guys work. They get your trust by building up one guy, even while they libel another. Then their fellow biographers, build up the guy they tore down, even while they tear down the guy the other built up. Then another ‘biographer’ comes along and quotes only the negative stuff from either or. It all gets very complicated and creates an indictment against every founder, sooner or later.
That McCullough endorsed Chernow’s book as well, brings his work under question. Which ought to be the case, for in his most excellent biography on Adams, he took cheap shots at Jefferson, with-holding facts regarding Jefferson’s finances (as well as Adams in comparison, and his guilt regarding buying too many books), and the ridiculous and unproven facts regarding the Sally Hemmings case. On the one hand, McCullough unveiled the untrustworthy origin of the Hemmings story as being a famous and ill motivated libelist James Calendar, on the other hand, he fell silent as to the untrustworthy motives, and flatly dishonest methods of those who have tried to establish a DNA connection between Hemmings and Jefferson today.
Nothing has been proven, nor can be, without her bones being dug up. He hid that fact. That makes his bringing up the charges, in an otherwise thorough and fair biography, pure propaganda, nothing less. The sort of stuff other ‘historians’ pick up and pass on, coming from such a ‘trusted’ source.
Trusted, think again. McCullough engaged in the bash Washington game in a very subtle way in his most recent historical work, “1776,” by calling the man incompetent, well, all through the French and Indian War, and the first battles of the American Revolution, including and especially in New York, but that he eventually wised up and became America’s First Hero.
That is, McCullough knowingly engaged in the game of defending the man, even as he reinforced old lies about him that came about as a result of ‘fresh’ research. His account was no where near as diabolical as Ellis’, but it adds to the grand total effect, doesn’t it? And he with-held who it was who originated these accounts, what were there motives, etc., as well as hiding from view the early accounts which dispute such opinions – not in every case, but in the overall sweep of the book, often enough to legitimize the illigitimate, and make Washington look like a buffoon – a principled buffoon.
Have you been victimized by propaganda? I feel confident, that we all have – especially in educational circles, and within the volumes of award winning writers.
