"Propaganda becomes ineffective the moment we are aware of it"
--Joseph Goebbels (1897-1945)
The part of the brain that controls short-term and long term memory is the prefrontal cortex. When there is a piece of information that you want to remember long-term, that information is transferred from a short-term to a long-term memory. Once stored however, the memory may be difficult for the brain to recall. However, if that piece of information is related to an image, the brain is able to recall it much quicker.
![Picture](/uploads/2/6/9/6/26961431/1570810.jpg?250)
This means that visual propaganda can be an extremely effective tool when used properly. The viewer views the image and the message associated with it, this is then translated to the brain, the hippo-campus will decide that it is important and must be a stored memory. The information is then translated in the hippo-campus to be remembered long term. Since the information that the viewer was subject to was visual, that visual will also be remembered by the brain, making it much easier for the brain to recall what it was just taught.
Another important factor to consider is repetition, the brain thrives on repetition. When a certain skill or idea is repeated over and over the brain stores it on a subconscious level. The idea becomes permanently stored and can be recalled easily. Once that skill or idea is stored the individual no longer needs to think about it consciously and whatever they have learned becomes an unconscious act. Once an act becomes unconscious, it can become very dangerous. An individual has a learned behavior stored in their brain that if associated with an image, or a repetitive message can be brought up very easily.
Another important factor to consider is repetition, the brain thrives on repetition. When a certain skill or idea is repeated over and over the brain stores it on a subconscious level. The idea becomes permanently stored and can be recalled easily. Once that skill or idea is stored the individual no longer needs to think about it consciously and whatever they have learned becomes an unconscious act. Once an act becomes unconscious, it can become very dangerous. An individual has a learned behavior stored in their brain that if associated with an image, or a repetitive message can be brought up very easily.
This TED talk by Tom Wujec explains in further detail what happens when the brain sees an image and how images can be used based on this information. He explains the way that our brains receive an image and how we create a digital map of the image we are viewing. Wujec also goes into some detail about the way our brains jump around looking at different points of the picture, as well as the way our brain is stimulated by color.