--- title: American propaganda, in seven panels url: https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/ description: Seven U.S. objects from 1754 to 2008, each shown in the words printed on it, with the archive's notes kept apart. section: Presentations --- ![Illustration: a pre-1914 imperial intelligence-dossier collage of colonial telegraph logs, sepia field photography and empire maps.](https://propagandaarchive.org/static/generated/detail/hero-pre1914.jpg) Presentations # American propaganda, in seven panels 1. [Home](https://propagandaarchive.org/) 2. [Presentations](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/) 3. American propaganda, in seven panels At a glance Seven U.S. objects from 1754 to 2008, each shown in the words printed on it, with the archive's notes kept apart. - **When:** 1754–2008 - **Actor:** Colonial printers… - **Target:** Domestic readers, and audiences in Korea and Cuba for the two broadcasts - **Confidence:** **documented** Primary documents, court records, official disclosures - **Techniques:** [Transfer](https://propagandaarchive.org/techniques/transfer/) [Glittering generalities](https://propagandaarchive.org/techniques/glittering-generalities/) [Card stacking](https://propagandaarchive.org/techniques/card-stacking/) [Name-calling](https://propagandaarchive.org/techniques/name-calling/) Full details - **Actor:** Colonial printers; Judge magazine; the Committee on Public Information; the Office of War Information; the Crusade for Freedom; the U.S. Information Agency; the Office of Cuba Broadcasting On this page - [The seven panels](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#the-seven-panels) - [Where to read the record](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#where-to-read-the-record) - [Sources](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#sources) On this page **In one line:** Seven U.S. objects from 1754 to 2008, each shown in the words printed on it, with the archive's notes kept apart. This page lines up seven objects from the collection in date order. The bordered block on each panel is the wording on that object, or the collection's translation of it. The note under the block names the issuer, the rights and the case study. Where a government calls its own output information or public diplomacy, this page uses the archive's word, propaganda, and the same technique names it uses for every other state. Previous and Next move between panels. The jump list and the page scroll reach the same seven. Nothing in a bordered block is the archive's description of a war, a party or a policy. ## The seven panels 1. [Join, or Die](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-join-or-die) (9 May 1754) 2. [Remember the Maine! And Don't Forget the Starving Cubans!](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-remember-the-maine) (7 May 1898) 3. [4 Minute Men: A Message from Washington](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-four-minute-men) (1917) 4. [Americans Will Always Fight for Liberty](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-owi-liberty) (1943) 5. [Give Freedom to the Captive Nations!](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-crusade) (1951) 6. [The Voice of America's news to Korea](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-voa-korea) (5 May 1953) 7. [Nuestra América](https://propagandaarchive.org/presentations/american-propaganda-seven-panels/#panel-nuestra-america) (23 July 2008) Panel 1 of 7 Panel 1 of 7 · 9 May 1754 · Pennsylvania Gazette ### Join, or Die ![Woodcut of a snake cut into eight pieces labelled with colony initials, above the words JOIN, or DIE, on a page of the Pennsylvania Gazette](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/images/join-or-die-franklin-1754.jpg) Words on the object > JOIN, or DIE. > > "the Destruction of the British Interest, Trade and Plantations in America" Archive record The woodcut, attributed to Benjamin Franklin, was printed in the *Pennsylvania Gazette* on 9 May 1754. The line in quotation marks is the warning the case study records from the text above the cut. The longer page is [Join or Die to the Boston Massacre: patriot and loyalist print, 1754-1783](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/american-revolution-prints/), which also covers loyalist replies to later patriot print. Library of Congress, item 2002695523. Public domain (no known restrictions on publication). Panel 2 of 7 · 7 May 1898 · Judge (New York) ### Remember the Maine! And Don't Forget the Starving Cubans! **Content note:** Photographs of emaciated, starving Cuban civilians reproduced in an 1898 American magazine cartoon. This object is shown as it was published. [Why](https://propagandaarchive.org/about/#as-it-was) ![Judge cartoon, 7 May 1898: Uncle Sam stands between photographs of the USS Maine and of emaciated Cuban civilians, under the slogan Remember the Maine! And Don't Forget the Starving Cubans!](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/remember-the-maine-starving-cubans-judge-1898.jpg) Words on the object > REMEMBER THE MAINE! > > AND DON'T FORGET THE STARVING CUBANS! Archive record *Judge* published Victor Gillam's cartoon on 7 May 1898, about two weeks after Congress's declaration of war on Spain (dated 25 April 1898, effective from 21 April) and about eleven weeks after the USS *Maine* exploded in Havana harbour on 15 February 1898. The collection entry states that a U.S. naval court of inquiry in March 1898 reported an external cause without assigning responsibility, and that Spain's inquiry reported an internal explosion. The cartoon names neither inquiry and names no cause. The longer page is [Remember the Maine: the yellow press and Spain, 1895-1898](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/yellow-press-1898/). Wikimedia Commons, from a Historical Society of Pennsylvania scan. Public domain (published 1898). Panel 3 of 7 · 1917 · Committee on Public Information ### 4 Minute Men: A Message from Washington ![Poster of a town crier in a tricorn hat ringing a handbell before Independence Hall, headed 4 Minute Men, with a card reading A Message from Washington and the Committee on Public Information named at the foot](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/four-minute-men-message-from-washington-1917.jpg) Words on the object > 4 MINUTE MEN > > A MESSAGE FROM WASHINGTON > > COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC INFORMATION Archive record H. Devitt Welsh drew the poster for the Committee on Public Information's Four Minute Men, volunteer speakers who gave four-minute talks in motion-picture theatres. The sheet names the committee. The longer page is [The Committee on Public Information: how the U.S. government sold the First World War at home (1917-1919)](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/cpi-creel-committee/). Library of Congress, item 93517441. Public domain in the United States (published before 1931). Panel 4 of 7 · 1943 · Office of War Information ### Americans Will Always Fight for Liberty ![OWI poster: Continental soldiers marked 1778 beside helmeted soldiers marked 1943, over the line Americans will always fight for liberty](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/americans-will-always-fight-for-liberty-1943.jpg) Words on the object > 1778 > > 1943 > > AMERICANS > > will always fight for liberty Words on a second OWI sheet in the collection > OURS... to fight for > > Freedom of Speech > > Freedom of Worship > > Freedom from Want > > Freedom from Fear Archive record The first block is Office of War Information poster no. 26, painted by Bernard Perlin and printed in 1943. It places the year 1778 beside the year 1943 under the word "liberty" and does not state a further war aim. Library of Congress, item 91784917. Public domain (U.S. government work; no known restrictions on publication). The second block is the legible heading on [Ours... to fight for: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom from Want, Freedom from Fear](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/ours-to-fight-for-four-freedoms-on-one-sheet-1941/). No date is printed legibly on that sheet. The National Archives dates the series from 1941, which is the start of the range, not a date read from the sheet, and attributes it to the Office of War Information. The longer pages are [The U.S. Office of War Information and the Writers' War Board: a 'strategy of truth' meets the advertising men](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/us-owi-writers-war-board/) and [Why We Fight: the U.S. Army's orientation films, 1942-1945](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/why-we-fight-series/), the Army orientation films of the same years. Panel 5 of 7 · 1951 · Crusade for Freedom ### Give Freedom to the Captive Nations! ![Donor stamp: a skyline of church spires, a Star of David, a minaret, onion domes and a pagoda above a red scene of soldiers attacking civilians, bordered by the words Give Freedom to the Captive Nations! Fight Communism!](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/crusade-for-freedom-stamp-1951.png) Words on the object > GIVE FREEDOM TO THE CAPTIVE NATIONS! > > FIGHT COMMUNISM! > > Crusade For Freedom Archive record The collection entry states that these stamps were sold to the U.S. public to support Radio Free Europe, and that Radio Free Europe's main funding until 1971 came from the U.S. government through the CIA (RFE/RL, "Our History"). The stamp's own text does not say that. The entry records the source as gray: the public appeal did not name the funder. The longer page is [The Crusade for Freedom: Truth Dollars for a CIA-funded radio, 1950-1971](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/crusade-for-freedom-radio-free-europe/). Wikimedia Commons. The collection entry records the rights as public domain (U.S. government work). Panel 6 of 7 · 5 May 1953 · Voice of America ### The Voice of America's news to Korea ![Korean photo sheet headed with the Voice of America's news to Korea, with photographs of a correspondent, editors, interviews and a family listening to a radio, and broadcast times at the foot](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/voice-of-america-news-to-korea-korean-1953.jpg) Translation of the Korean text on the sheet > The Voice of America's news to Korea. The Voice of America broadcasts in 46 languages. Since the attention of the world was concentrated on Korea, where 16 countries are fighting the Communist aggressors, they have taken a greater interest in Korea. The Voice of America broadcast is making known to the world their brave appearance and the courage of the Korean people. Archive record The block is the collection's English translation of the sheet's opening. The sheet is in Korean. The National Archives dates it 5 May 1953 (NAID 5730148, Record Group 306) and titles it "Voice of America Sends News to Korea." Photo captions and broadcast times are on [Voice of America Sends News to Korea: 한국에의 「미국의소리」뉴-쓰 (Korean poster distributed in Korea)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/voice-of-america-news-to-korea-korean-1953/). Public domain (U.S. government work). Panel 7 of 7 · 23 July 2008 · Office of Cuba Broadcasting ### Nuestra América ![Television studio: two presenters at a desk, a screen behind them reading Nuestra América, and a partly cropped TV Martí logo](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/tv-marti-newscast-bbg-2008.jpg) Words on the object > Nuestra América Archive record The collection's translation of the programme title on the set is "Our America." The logo at the right edge is cropped; the entry reads it as TV Martí. The entry states that Radio Martí began on 20 May 1985 under the Radio Broadcasting to Cuba Act of 1983 and that TV Martí began on 27 March 1990; that the Cuban government jams the signals and calls them illegal; and that the Cuban government and party also invoke José Martí. A title card from the same office's newscast of 10 June 2026 is ["Noticiero Martí Noticias": title card of the newscast of 10 June 2026](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/noticiero-marti-noticias-title-card-2026/). Wikimedia Commons, from the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Public domain (U.S. government work; Commons tag PD-USGov-BBG). ![Illustration: a microfilm reader and card-catalogue drawers with film strips and index cards.](https://propagandaarchive.org/static/generated/graphics/microfilm-archive.jpg) Illustration, not an archive object ## Where to read the record The seven panels are the objects above. They are not a full list of American material in the archive. A 1964 sheet distributed through USIS Manila, [Credo, Peace, Progress and Freedom poster (English poster distributed in Manila)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/credo-peace-progress-freedom-united-nations-english-1964/), prints the lines "Credo: PEACE, PROGRESS AND FREEDOM FOR ALL MEN." The case studies treat single campaigns at length, for the United States and for other states, under the same technique names. They also state differences in who held power, what the message asked for, and what later records established. For the objects on this page: [Join or Die to the Boston Massacre: patriot and loyalist print, 1754-1783](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/american-revolution-prints/), [Remember the Maine: the yellow press and Spain, 1895-1898](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/yellow-press-1898/), [The Committee on Public Information: how the U.S. government sold the First World War at home (1917-1919)](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/cpi-creel-committee/), [The U.S. Office of War Information and the Writers' War Board: a 'strategy of truth' meets the advertising men](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/us-owi-writers-war-board/), [Why We Fight: the U.S. Army's orientation films, 1942-1945](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/why-we-fight-series/), [The Crusade for Freedom: Truth Dollars for a CIA-funded radio, 1950-1971](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/crusade-for-freedom-radio-free-europe/). For other states' wartime offices in the same years as panels 3 and 4: [Britain's Ministry of Information and Political Warfare Executive: posters at home, black radio abroad](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/british-moi-pwe/), [The Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, 1933-1945](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/reich-propaganda-ministry/), [Soviet wartime propaganda, 1939-1945: Sovinformburo, Agitprop and the Red Army press](https://propagandaarchive.org/case-studies/soviet-wartime-propaganda/). ## Sources - *Pennsylvania Gazette*, 9 May 1754, [Library of Congress 2002695523](https://www.loc.gov/item/2002695523/). - *Judge* (New York), 7 May 1898, Victor Gillam, [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Remember_the_Maine!_And_Don%27t_Forget_the_Starving_Cubans!_-_Victor_Gillam_(cropped).jpg). - H. Devitt Welsh, Four Minute Men poster, 1917, [Library of Congress 93517441](https://www.loc.gov/item/93517441/). - Bernard Perlin, Office of War Information poster no. 26, 1943, [Library of Congress 91784917](https://www.loc.gov/item/91784917/). - "Ours... to fight for," National Archives NAID 513635, [catalog.archives.gov/id/513635](https://catalog.archives.gov/id/513635). - Crusade for Freedom stamp, 1951, [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crusade_Stamp_3.png). The funding sentence follows the collection entry, which cites RFE/RL, "Our History." - Voice of America sheet, 5 May 1953, National Archives NAID 5730148, [catalog.archives.gov/id/5730148](https://catalog.archives.gov/id/5730148). - TV Martí, "Nuestra América," 23 July 2008, [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marti-newscast-hires.jpg).