Gorgias vs. Socrates/Plato; Creel vs. Lippmann; Telling a story vs. telling the truth: The historical tension in U.S. public diplomacy

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Quantum Activist

Is Truth relative, or absolute?

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  John Brown Gorgias vs Socrates/Plato: FYI, am writing a piece comparing George Creel, head of the Committee on Public Information (1917-19), the first USG propaganda agency, (although it dared not tell its name), with Walter Lippmann, who worked for Military Intelligence during WWI, when he was part of the"propaganda machine" of the USG, according to http://video.pbs.org/video/1512027534/. My piece, at this point, is an effort to understand two elements (contradictory?) at the origins of U.S. public diplomacy -- telling a story (Creel) or telling the truth (Lippmann at his best). But perhaps this is too strong a dichotomy. The main point/question of the piece: USG big-time propaganda began in WWI, when America became "global." What direction should it (the prop) have/has taken? Or was it justifiable  -- or even useful to the U.S.'s national interests -- in 

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