Adam Curtis' acclaimed series examines the rise of the all-consuming
self against the backdrop of the Freud dynasty. This series is a MUST
SEE for all those who want to know the truth about the use of subliminal
manipulation of the subconscious to induce the "buying of products" -
be they consumer goods, policies, or politicians.
,,,and ultimately
the creation of "false flag" operations to induce the "nightmares"
[nexuses of evil, terrorism, etc.] needed to maintain the allegiance to
these "products" that only a common enemy can achieve...

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend.".

Creator, Adam Curtis, has graciously made this BBC series available for download in various formats at Internet Archive here:
http://www.archive.org/details/AdamCurtis_TheCenturyOfTheSelf

SERIES DETAIL:

To
many in both politics and business, the triumph of the self is the
ultimate expression of democracy, where power has finally moved to the
people. Certainly the people may feel they are in charge, but are they
really? The Century of the Self tells the untold and sometimes
controversial story of the growth of the mass-consumer society in
Britain and the United States. How was the all-consuming self created,
by whom, and in whose interests?

The Freud dynasty is at the
heart of this compelling social history. Sigmund Freud, founder of
psychoanalysis; Edward Bernays, who invented public relations; Anna
Freud, Sigmund's devoted daughter; and present-day PR guru and Sigmund's
great grandson, Matthew Freud.

Sigmund Freud's work into the
bubbling and murky world of the subconscious changed the world. By
introducing a technique to probe the unconscious mind, Freud provided
useful tools for understanding the secret desires of the masses.
Unwittingly, his work served as the precursor to a world full of
political spin doctors, marketing moguls, and society's belief that the
pursuit of satisfaction and happiness is man's ultimate goal.

EPISODE DETAIL: Happiness Machines

The
story of the relationship between Sigmund Freud and his American
nephew, Edward Bernays. Bernays invented the public relations profession
in the 1920s and was the first person to take Freud's ideas and use
them to manipulate the masses. He showed American corporations how they
could make people want things they didn't need by systematically linking
mass-produced goods to their unconscious desires.

Bernays was
one of the main architects of the modern techniques of mass-consumer
persuasion, using every trick in the book, from celebrity endorsement
and outrageous PR stunts, to eroticising the motorcar.

His most
notorious coup was breaking the taboo on women smoking by persuading
them that cigarettes were a symbol of independence and freedom. But
Bernays was convinced that this was more than just a way of selling
consumer goods. It was a new political idea of how to control the
masses. By satisfying the inner irrational desires that his uncle had
identified, people could be made happy and thus docile.