When fear takes on a face.
A threat is not always imaginary. Real adversaries, conflicts and dangers do exist. Recognising a threat, however, is different from constructing an image of the enemy.
Propaganda gives fear a face, a name, a group or an ideology. It creates two camps: “Us” and “Them”. The adversary is simplified, stripped of nuance and gradually turned into an explanation for every problem.
When the enemy is overestimated or underestimated, an objective assessment of the actual risk is lost.
A common enemy rallies people together. It unites groups, justifies decisions and can become a powerful instrument of leadership and control. For this mechanism to work, the enemy does not always have to attack. It is enough to remain threatening.
The critical point comes when we stop judging an adversary for what they do and begin condemning them for what they are.
A rational approach requires two simple questions:
- What is the actual evidence?
- Who benefits from the way the enemy is portrayed?
The most powerful construction of an enemy is not the one that tells us whom to fear.
It is the one that makes us believe we chose that enemy ourselves.