This site documents the Lennox Seminar Series on Propaganda and Political Persuasion which unfolded at Trinity University in 2016. Four experts on the topic of political communication visited the campus to discuss current events and our contemporary media landscape. In addition to delivering public evening lectures, our guests also met with students enrolled in the Lennox seminar for an in-depth discussion of political propaganda.

• Erin Saltman delivered a powerful talk titled “From Neo-Nazis to Jihadists: The Allure of Violent Extremist Propaganda Online and How to Counter It.” For those who missed her talk, you can view Dr. Saltman’s public lecture or watch her interview with Trinity students Jonathan Maislin and Elena Souris.
• W. Kamau Bell gave a spoken word performance of his comic monologue titled “The W. Kamau Bell Curve: Ending Racism in About an Hour.” Although we were not able to record his public lecture. seminar participants Julia Elmore and Grace Frye interviewed Mr. Bell for an article in The Trinitonian.
• Chip Berlet presented his research on domestic politic extremism in a lecture titled “Trumping Democracy: Conspiracy Theories, Right-Wing Propaganda, and Scripted Violence.” For those who missed his talk, you can view Mr. Berlet’s public lecture or watch his interview with Trinity students David Hoffman and Daniel Mulholland.
• Tricia Jenkins explored tight relationships between American intelligence agencies and the entertainment industry in “Get Smart: Understanding How the CIA Works with Hollywood.” We encourage you to view Dr. Jenkins’ public lecture or watch her interview with Trinity student Nipuni Gomes.

This seminar was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Martha, David & Bagby Lennox Foundation, and with additional support from the Stieren Arts Enrichment Series.