Sign the petition. Change the galaxy?
- acox31
- Oct 13, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 29, 2021
Although the political machinations behind this imagined piece of propaganda may not be immediately obvious, what I wanted to make clear was the message: you too can join with the Walt Disney Company to change the galaxy and restore Pluto’s planethood.
I went this route for this assignment because of Disney’s position as a multinational entertainment conglomerate and its unequivocal influence on popular culture, particularly among young children. You don’t need me to give you a rundown of Disney’s holdings, but a quick Internet search will tell you that more than a few major entertainment and media companies (Pixar, Marvel, Hulu, ESPN, ABC Broadcast network, and more) roll up into Disney.
I start with these observations to underscore how the Disney fits Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky’s propaganda model as a prime example of the first filter of news or culture: a dominant mass-media firm that is a large business, controlled by very wealthy people, and is driven by market-oriented profits, which aligns its business interests with other corporations, banks, and the government (2006). While the body of scholarship on the ways Disney influences media is still growing, pop culture critics have raised concerns about its well-known approach to storytelling for young audiences: “buy a story, bleach it in a caustic vat of cuteness, and pump it out in exchange for cold hard cash” (Wisecrack, 2020; 8:23). And, since Disney has knack for rewriting narratives in the collective consciousness of the general public, for this assignment, I thought, Why not take this one step further and imagine that the company also harbors reasons and means to rewrite science?
Thus, my piece of propaganda, "Uncle Pluto wants you to make Pluto a planet again," was born. It’s aimed at a target audience of those, like myself, who grew up in a time when Pluto was considered a planet (1930-2006), and who consumed a healthy diet of Disney media as children.
For this piece, I adapted the iconic WWI Uncle Sam propaganda poster to lend it some political gravitas. By invoking that image, I’m borrowing from its connotations of nationalism, and urgency for the viewer to take action, do their part, and take up arms in a(n imagined) conflict. By overlaying the face of Disney’s beloved character, Pluto, and adding the unmistakable castle logo to the upper corner of the image, I’m showing the audience a patriotic and trustworthy brand, and making a clear call to action: Reject the 2006 reclassification of Pluto as a dwarf planet, by taking scientific matters into your own hands and reclaiming planethood for the former ninth world.
Uncle Pluto also borrows from more recent cultural connotations to inspire the audience to action. I intentionally included “again” at the end of the second line to mimic the political rhetoric of an infamous reelection campaign to “Make America Great Again.” The implication I’m aiming to make is that the American people have the power to right the injustice of Pluto’s demotion to dwarf planet and restore it to its former glory. This rhetorical move also subtly encourages the viewer to take matters into their own hands when it comes to questioning decisions and information from the scientific community.
Although we may never know whether or not Disney has a vested interest in using the propaganda machine to generate support for reinstating Pluto’s planetary status, there still lingers some support from NASA scientists and plutonian fans, alike. Who knows? It may not be too late to make Pluto a planet again. It's a small world, after all...
References
Herman, E., & Chomsky, N. (2006). A propaganda model. In M. G. Durham and D. M. Kellner (Eds.). Media and cultural studies: Key works. Blackwell Publishing.
On This Day In Space (n.d.) OTD in space – Aug. 24: Pluto loses its planetary status [Video]. Space.com. https://videos.space.com/m/gpauFYfR/otd-in-space-aug-24-pluto-loses-its-planetary-status?list=9wzCTV4g
Vox (2015, July 24). Here are the Pluto pics we’ve waited 85 years for [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/a07VvKCjRDY
Wisecrack (2020, November 9). How Disney ruined culture [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/_jed8B4L4-4
This is a very clever piece of propaganda. It is a highly recognized image (clearly since we all choose to talk about Uncle Sam in one way or another). This has a clear call to action and a very recognizable message. I like the use to the "make America great again" structure and it is always fun to see a Disney character fighting for what they believe in. Very cleaver adaptation of this assignment!
This incorporated a lot of great aspects that propaganda relies on to further its message. Disney, Uncle Sam, "Make America Great Again," science, all of these aspects if they achieve in convincing one person to their side, it adds to the profits of a large corporate entity or the government. The Disney aspect is the most disarming because people, parents especially, want to believe the words of something that is supposedly children-free and innocent. And you also want to believe that your government has your best interests.
And the amount of times science has been called into question by something that has no scientific backing is far higher than it should be. Propaganda achieves its goal though because it has…
The Disney example is spot on. Disney went from this "it's just for kids" form of entertainment to this giant multinational presence in entertainment, tech, broadcasting, and communications. What's funny, to me, is the first thing I thought was, "Would Disney be okay with the use of Pluto's image?" This is the level of control Disney has over its image. You can't even use the Disney font without them pursuing the matter. Even if one is not passionate about space and planets, seeing Pluto's face gives me the impression the following message is Disney approved. I've literally been trained to spot what is okay by Disney and what is not. So, what a great image and propaganda tie in to…