Thursday, October 18, 1984
The Pendulum
Page 5
Jesse Helms and the ^big lie’ theory
By Bob Nowell
Assistant Professor
of Communications
V
Adolf Hitler practiced what
he called the “big lie” theory of
propaganda. Recognizing that
people want to believe their
leaders tell them the truth, Hit
ler reasoned that he could get
away with saying preposterous
things—indeed, that, for a lead
er, “the bigger the lie, the more
likely it is to be believed.”
Thus, Hitler and the Nazis
systematically disseminated
the Big Lie that Aryans—
blond-haired, blue-eyed white
people—were a master race,
deserving to dominate all
others. The Nazis also argued
that Jews were the basic cause
of all Germany’s troubles;
hence, the Jews had to be ex
terminated.
It seems impossible today
that anyone in the 1930s could
have fallen for such insane rab-
berousing. Yet the horrible re
sults of the war fought to ex
tend these beliefs are well
known to everyone.
The Nazis in Germany were
never more than a tiny minor
ity of the total population, and
the “true believers” in Aryan
superiority among party mem
bers may have been even few
er. Yet Hitler could not have
succeeded without at least the
tacit support of millions of Ger
mans—people who must have
been able to see through the
Big Lies, but who could not or
would not do so until it was too
late.
The “big lie” theory takes an
utterly demeaning view of the
masses of people, assuming
they are gullible and incapable
of discovering the truth for
themselves. Like all theories, it
is subject to the test of experi
ence. One might argue that the
success of the Nazis in Ger
many is proof that the “big lie”
theory works. In fact, one who
might do so is Senator Jesse
Helms, Republican of North
Carolina, who clearly is prac
ticing the “big lie” theory in his
attempt to keep Democratic
Gov. Jim Hunt from taking his
seat.
On Oct 7, the Greensboro
News & Record reported that
Helms had called Hunt a “ra
cist.” For those familiar with
Helms’ record as a public fi
gure, going all the way back to
the beginning of his career as a
television editorialist in 1960,
the statement was a ludicrous
falsehood. Helms made a name
for himself at Raleigh’s Chan
nel 5 in large part because of
his belittling of the civil rights
movement, particularly the
Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.;
and he has voted against every
major piece of civil rights leg
islation, including the Martin
Luther King Jr. national holi
day, to come before the Senate
during his two terms.
In 1984 the Helms campaign
has paid for newspaper and
television advertisements that
employ photographs of Hunt
and the Rev Jesse Jackson; the
ads call Jackson a “radical,”
they complain that Jackson has
tried to register black voters in
the South, and they demand to
know whether voters want to
send to Washington a man like
Jim Hunt, who dares to associ
ate with Jesse Jackson.
Helms told the News & Re
cord that Hunt is “trying to
appeal to black citizens, but
he’s trying to hide it.” Thus, he
concludes, it is Jim Hunt, not
Jesse Helms, who is the “ra
cist.”
Who does the senator believe
will be convinced by this lie?
Certainly not blacks, who re
cent polls show will probably
vote against Helms by at least
15 to 1. Certainly not well-
informed people who have fol
lowed Helms’ long record of
hostility to progress for minor
ities, and who know of Hunt’s
efforts to work harmoniously
with people of al races. Who,
then?
Jacques Ellul, author of
Propaganda: The Formation of
Men's Attitudes, points out that
all successful propaganda
must have an aspect of truth to
it. It is true that Hunt has meet
with Jesse Jackson. It is true
that Hunt must have black
votes to defeat Helms. But, says
Ellul, we must make “a radical
distinction between a fact on
the one hand and on intentions
or interpretations on the
other,” for the realm of inten
tions and interpretations is
“the real realm of the lie.”
“If one falsifies a fact, “Ellul
writes, “one may be confronted
with unquestionable proof to
the contrary.” (For example,
Helms could not get away with
saying he voted for the Martin
Luther King Jr. holiday, and he
has not tried to do so.) “But,”
Ellul continues, “no proof can
be furnished where motiva
tions or intentions are con
cerned or interpretation of a
fact is involved. A fact has
different significance, depend
ing on whether it is analyzed by
a bourgeois economist or a
Soviet economist, by a liberal
historian, a Christain or a Mar
xist historian.”
Letters
Jesse Helms appears sin
cerely to believe that Jesse
Jackson’s drive to register
black voters is evidence of the
desire of blacks as a race to
seize power from the white fun
damentalist Christians whom
Helms sees as the majority of
Americans and whom he
claims to represent well. He in
terprets the situation as a pow
er struggle between whites and
blacks; his intention is to
reawaken submerged racial
prejudice in white people so
that they will participate in the
struggle to maintain the domi
nance of their race. And this
appeal to divisiveness is the
most damning thing of all that
can be said against Helms.
Like many Americans, I have
had to consciously try to purge
myself of the racism and sex
ism which permeated every
aspect of my environment as a
child growing up in the 1950s.
Psvchologists tell us that a
great deal of our significant
learning—those bedrock atti
tudes and values which are the
most resistant to change—is ac
quired by the age of six. Thus, it
is probably impossible com
pletely to “un learn racism and
sexism, though these negative
traits can be controlled by a
continuing effort of the will.
See Helms, page 8
continued from page 4
the general noise level in the library.
With regard to the first issue, the lib
rary custodian has a three-story build
ing to clean every day Monday through
Friday. Beginning at 7:00 a.m., an hour
before the library opens, the library
custodian finds it impossible to finish
her cleaning routine by 8:00 a.m. The
library administration has determined
through studying library patterns that
the early morning hours between 7:00
a.m. and 9:00 a.m. are best for the major
cleaning tasks such as vacumming and
emptying trashcans. Library traffic is
at a minimal level during this time
period. Incidentally, since there are
three floors in the library and only one
custodian, it is always possible to find
two floors where the noise of cleaning
does not cause a disturbance.
The second concern has been addres
sed by library policy and by action. The
basement and second floor have been
designated quiet study areas. There are
signs throughout the library which
reinforce this policy. A monitor has
been hired to keep these floors quiet at
night when llibrary traffic is at the
maximal level. The main floor is re
served for group study since many stu
dents prefer to study in groups.
I appreciate the opportunity to re
spond to the issues raised by Mouche
Maggio and to encourage others to
share their concerns with me.
Plummer Alston Jones, Jr.
Head Librarian
Parents Weekend scheduled for Nov. 2
To the Editor:
Parents Weekend has evolved into
one of the major campus-wide events of
the academic year. Judging by the num
ber of inquiries received in the Office
of Alumni and Parent Programs during
the past several weeks, a record num
ber of families wil visit Elon this year to
participate in the activities that are
planned. November 2-4 is Parents
Weekend.
A dance on Saturday evening called
the “5th Quarter Social” will be held at
the Alamance County Club, and stu
dents and their parents should be
aware of two important restrictions
that apply at this function:
1. Because club regulations disallow
the sale of tickets to this event on the
premises, tickets MUST be purchased
in advance. No one will be admitted
that evening without a ticket.
2. Because the dance honors the pa
rents of Elon students, students will not
be admitted unless accompanied by
their parents or the parents of another
student.
This year the event is open to all stu
dents, including freshmen, and I am
certain that everyone who attends will
thoroughly enjoy the “5th Quarter So
cial.”
Other events for which family mem
bers may desire tickets include a picnic
lunch and the football game. Students
may purchase tickets for their family in
the Office of Alumni and Parent Prog
rams, located in Powell Building, Room
101.
J King White „
Director of Alumni & Parents Programs
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