Streaming with closed captions
As the information age transforms our societies and political arenas, democracies are being tested in a post-truth era. Advertising agencies, originally developed to help capitalist industries capture market share, have begun to apply their finely tuned propaganda machine to elections. British firm Bell Pottinger was one of the world’s most prominent public relations and reputation management agencies. Their keen ability to develop and disseminate personal branding for disgraced politicians, dictators and companies was highly sought after by the rich and powerful. They seemed unstoppable, until one of their campaigns incited a flashpoint of racial tensions in South Africa and became an unmitigated disaster for these veteran spin doctors. Archival material provides a factual background to interviews with the firm’s founder, Lord Tim Bell, and those who worked with, for and against him. This riveting examination of the emergence of weaponized communication is both a historical account and dark warning. Alexander Rogalski
This film includes a pre-recorded Q&A.
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