--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The aim of modern propaganda is no longer…" description: "\"The aim of modern propaganda is no longer to modify ideas, but to provoke action.\" — Jacques Ellul" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/jacques-ellul-4407_action_the-aim-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longe_2450962.jpg" --- # The aim of modern propaganda is no longer to modify ideas… ![“The aim of modern propaganda is no longer to modify ideas, but to provoke action.” quote by Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/jacques-ellul-4407_action_the-aim-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longe_2450962.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/jacques-ellul-4407_action_the-aim-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longe_2450962.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/jacques-ellul-4407_action_the-aim-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longe_2450962.jpg) > “The aim of modern propaganda is no longer to modify ideas, but to provoke action.” [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern propaganda seeks to incite action rather than just shift thoughts. **In simple terms:** Propaganda now aims to provoke action. Key Takeaway Critically assess calls to action in media. Themes media influence activism Mood skeptical alert Type critical analytical When to use this quote - advertising campaigns - political rallies - online movements Key Concepts political theory behavioral psychology social engineering Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate genuine calls to action from manipulative ones? - What responsibilities do creators have when urging action? A Different Perspective Action-driven propaganda can manipulate without providing context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Aim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aim/) [Aim Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aim-modern-570872/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Provoke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-provoke-570871/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern Propaganda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-propaganda-570868/) [Propaganda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propaganda/) [Propaganda Longer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propaganda-longer-570869/) [Provoke Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/provoke-action-570870/) [Provoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/provoking/) ## Related quotes > [The goal of modern propaganda is no longer to transform opinion but to arouse an active and mythical belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-goal-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longer-to-transform-opinion-but/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [When there is propaganda, we are no longer able to evaluate certain questions, or even to discuss them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/when-there-is-propaganda-we-are-no-longer-able-to-evaluate-certain/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [“The First World War; the Russian revolution of 1917; Hitler's revolution of 1933; the second World War; the further development of revolutionary wars since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-first-world-war-the-russian-revolution-of-1917-hitler-s/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [My aim is a very modern Dior, but at the end of the day, I also look back,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raf-simons/my-aim-is-a-very-modern-dior-but-at-the-end-of-the-day-i-also-look/) [Raf Simons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raf-simons/) > [“The point of modern propaganda isn't only to misinform or push an agenda. It is to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth." (quoting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/the-point-of-modern-propaganda-isn-t-only-to-misinform-or-push-an/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [“Garry Kasparov, the Russian chess grandmaster and Putin opponent who said, “The point of modern propaganda isn’t only to misinform or push an agenda.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/garry-kasparov-the-russian-chess-grandmaster-and-putin-opponent-who/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [The first modern propaganda agency was the British Ministry of Information a century ago, which secretly defined its task as to direct the thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-modern-propaganda-agency-was-the-british-ministry-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The point of modern propaganda isn't only to misinform or push an agenda. It is to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/the-point-of-modern-propaganda-isn-t-only-to-misinform-or-push-an-2/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [It is the multiplication of men who are exluded from working which provokes war. 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We’ve always been holy troublemakers, we’ve always been creators of uncertainty, agents of dimension that’s incompatible with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/christians-were-never-meant-to-be-normal-we-ve-always-been-holy/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [It is inconceivable that the God who gives Himself in His Son to save us, should have created some people ordained to evil and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/it-is-inconceivable-that-the-god-who-gives-himself-in-his-son-to-save/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Technological society leads to increasing numbers of people who cannot adapt to the inhuman rhythm of modern life with its emphasis on specialization. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/technological-society-leads-to-increasing-numbers-of-people-who/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [It is the multiplication of men who are exluded from working which provokes war. We ought at least to bear this in mind when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/it-is-the-multiplication-of-men-who-are-exluded-from-working-which/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [The orchestration of press, radio and television to create a continuous, lasting and total environment renders the influence of propaganda virtually unnoticed precisely because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-orchestration-of-press-radio-and-television-to-create-a/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [“No society can last in conditions of anarchy. This is self-evident and I am in full agreement. But my aim is not the establishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/no-society-can-last-in-conditions-of-anarchy-this-is-self-evident-and/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [The qualities which technique requires for its advance are precisely those characteristics of a technical order which do not represent indivisual intelligence...The individual, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-qualities-which-technique-requires-for-its-advance-are-precisely/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Education no longer has a humanist end or any value in itself; it has only one goal, to create technicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/education-no-longer-has-a-humanist-end-or-any-value-in-itself-it-has/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [The goal of modern propaganda is no longer to transform opinion but to arouse an active and mythical belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/the-goal-of-modern-propaganda-is-no-longer-to-transform-opinion-but/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Freedom is completely without meaning unless it is related to necessity, unless it represents victory over necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/freedom-is-completely-without-meaning-unless-it-is-related-to/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [When there is propaganda, we are no longer able to evaluate certain questions, or even to discuss them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/when-there-is-propaganda-we-are-no-longer-able-to-evaluate-certain/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [True technique will know how to maintain the illusion of liberty, choice, and individuality; but these will have been carefully calculated so that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/true-technique-will-know-how-to-maintain-the-illusion-of-liberty/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [No one knows where we are going, the aim of life has been forgotten, the end has been left behind. Man has set out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/no-one-knows-where-we-are-going-the-aim-of-life-has-been-forgotten/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) [Explore all 106 Jacques Ellul quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) ## More Action quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-always-say-there-are-two-things-to-be-successful-the-first-is/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. 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