From Someone Who Has Never Lost
The first political campaign I ever worked on was a successful, local, tripartisan effort. As a follower of American national politics, it was, and continues to be, shocking that Republicans, Democrats, and Independents worked together for the common good despite everyone anticipating a power shift at the end. In fact, to my knowledge, that resultant power shift remains unchanged to this day.
If I recall correctly, I was recruited because I knew several prominent participants personally, and I was known to have good relations with the local media. Furthermore, I was already aware of the first, failed, partisan attempt one year prior. Therefore, I dubbed myself the committee’s “propagandist" and worked on a volunteer basis; the common good affected me, too.
Despite the negative connotation of the word “propaganda,” I used it for a very specific reason: I demanded honesty and positivity. The irony still appeals to me. A political opponent would later publicly label me the committee’s “annoying bullhorn,” and I considered adopting a bullhorn as my logo, but all these years later I still prefer “propagandist.”
Honesty
An interesting thing about truth is that people recognize it. I’m not a psychologist, but reactions from the field…
