Ever wonder why you eat bacon for breakfast? Or why you feel a sudden urge to buy a car because it makes you look "adventurous" rather than just because it gets you to work?
Most of us like to think we’re in the driver's seat. We make our own choices. We have "free will." But if you look back at the early 20th century, you’ll find a guy named Edward Bernays who basically proved that’s a lie. He didn’t just sell products; he rewired the American brain.
Edward L Bernays propaganda wasn't some shadowy government secret. He wrote the book on it. Literally. He titled it Propaganda. He was the nephew of Sigmund Freud, and he took all those deep, dark theories about the subconscious and turned them into a billion-dollar industry.
💡 You might also like: Finding the Right Image of a Blank Check Without Getting Scammed or Sued
He didn't want to tell you what to buy. He wanted to change who you are so that buying the product felt like your own idea. It’s brilliant. It’s also kinda terrifying.
The Man Who Engineered Your Morning Meal
Before Bernays, advertising was boring. If you sold a piano, you talked about the wood and the keys. Bernays thought that was amateur hour. He realized that if you could link a product to a deep-seated emotional need—status, sex, belonging—you could sell anything.
Take breakfast. In the early 1920s, Americans ate light: maybe some fruit, a roll, some coffee. The Beech-Nut Packing Company wanted to sell more bacon. Instead of putting up posters saying "Bacon is Tasty," Bernays went to a doctor.
Actually, he went to his own doctor and asked if a heavy breakfast was better for people. The doctor said yes. Bernays then asked that doctor to write to 5,000 other doctors to see if they agreed. About 4,500 of them did.
He didn't run an ad. He ran news stories. "4,500 Doctors Urge Heavy Breakfasts to Improve Health." The stories mentioned that bacon and eggs were the ideal "heavy" meal. Suddenly, eating grease for breakfast wasn't just a choice; it was medical advice. Sales through the roof.
That’s the "Third Party Technique." If a company tells you their product is great, you ignore them. If your doctor—or a "scientific study"—tells you, you listen. We still fall for this every single day on TikTok and Instagram.
🔗 Read more: Why Crown Laboratories to Acquire Revance Therapeutics August 12 2024 Shook Up the Aesthetic World
The Torches of Freedom: Feminism as a Sales Pitch
Bernays’ most famous (and most controversial) stunt happened in 1929. At the time, women smoking in public was a huge social taboo. George Washington Hill, the president of the American Tobacco Company, realized he was losing half his potential market.
He called Bernays.
Bernays consulted a psychoanalyst (A.A. Brill) who told him that cigarettes were a symbol of male power. If women could be convinced that smoking was a way to challenge that power, they’d buy in.
So, Bernays staged a "protest" during the New York City Easter Sunday Parade. He hired a group of debutantes to march down Fifth Avenue. At a signal, they all lit up. He told the press that these women were lighting "Torches of Freedom."
He didn't mention he was on the tobacco company's payroll.
The newspapers went wild. Front-page news everywhere. Smoking was no longer a "dirty habit" for women; it was a badge of liberation. He took a legitimate social movement—suffrage and equality—and stapled it to a pack of Lucky Strikes.
Edward L Bernays Propaganda: The "Invisible Government"
Bernays wasn’t shy about what he was doing. He famously wrote:
"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country."
He honestly believed the "common people" were too stupid to govern themselves. In his mind, an elite group of "public relations" experts needed to guide the masses for their own good. He called this the Engineering of Consent. It sounds like a conspiracy theory, but for Bernays, it was just business. He worked for everyone from Procter & Gamble to the United Fruit Company. And that's where things got really dark.
The Coup in Guatemala
In the 1950s, the United Fruit Company (now Chiquita) was worried. The democratically elected president of Guatemala, Jacobo Árbenz, wanted to give idle land back to the peasants. This was bad for United Fruit's bottom line.
Bernays didn't just run ads. He started a misinformation campaign.
He flew influential American journalists to Guatemala on "fact-finding" trips. He fed them stories about a "Communist threat" in America's backyard. He created fake news agencies and front groups that pumped out "reports" about how Árbenz was a puppet of Moscow.
🔗 Read more: Rite Aid Marconi Ave: What Really Happened to This Neighborhood Staple
It worked. The U.S. government, fueled by the public opinion Bernays helped manufacture, backed a CIA-led coup in 1954. Árbenz was ousted. Decades of civil war followed.
This wasn't about selling soap anymore. This was using Edward L Bernays propaganda to topple a government for a fruit company.
Why You Should Care in 2026
You might think you’re too savvy for this. You use an ad-blocker. You don't read "the news."
But Bernays’ techniques have just moved online. When you see an "organic" trend on social media that turns out to be a coordinated marketing campaign? That’s Bernays. When a "thought leader" posts a thread that happens to mention a specific software tool? That’s the Third Party Technique.
The "Invisible Government" is now an algorithm, but the psychology is the same. They don't want to argue with your logic. They want to trigger your emotions.
How to Spot the "Engineering"
- Watch for the "Hero" Narrative: If a product is framed as the key to your identity (e.g., "This laptop is for the creatives"), someone is using Bernays' playbook.
- Check the "Experts": Who funded the study? Who is the "independent" organization recommending the policy?
- The "Spontaneous" Event: If something looks too perfectly timed for the cameras, it probably is. Bernays called these "pseudo-events."
The legacy of Edward L Bernays propaganda is everywhere. He turned us from citizens into consumers. He taught us to buy things we don't need with money we don't have to impress people we don't like—all because we think it was our idea.
Next Steps for the Informed Consumer:
To start de-programming, your first step is to read Bernays’ 1928 book, Propaganda. It’s a short read and shockingly honest. After that, look into the "Century of the Self" documentary by Adam Curtis. It’s the gold standard for understanding how the PR industry grew out of Freud’s basements and into our pockets.
When you see a headline today that makes you feel a sudden flash of anger or a deep need to belong, stop. Ask: "Who wants me to feel this way, and what are they selling?"
Awareness is the only real way to take back your consent.