Intro to Militainment – Militainment Watchalong Series: Part 1 – E081

Are you ready to join us on our next Watchalong?!? Madison and Tristan talk about a little known about and present reality in film, television, music, print, and across all mediums of media: propaganda. Military propaganda to be precise.

In this first episode, we introduce an academic term, “Militainment,” and get into some of the research on the subject, and some of the self-published cases from agencies and comms team for the U.S. armed forces.

How many movies? Which ones? ⁠Here's a list⁠ of some of the 700+ movies with DoD approval and funding.

Now, for any agents of the Dept. of Defense (DoD) or any patriotic listeners whose feathers we've just ruffled, let’s discuss how we’re looking at the subject and films.

We are critically breaking down propaganda and Militainment on our first episode. That includes the history of propaganda, how it was used in the early 20th century, the father of PR (Edward Bernays), and how propaganda was demonized and solely attributed to evil actors. 

The power and influence in movies shown is both subliminal and blatant, and we should be careful not to be hypercritical and combative when discussing the power of visual and audio messaging. That said, it is important that informed viewers analyze their entertainment as much as they consume it. In that spirit, we take a look at a paper Tristan wrote in 2021 about Militainment, propaganda, and a case study break down of Independence Day and Independence Day: Resurgence.

For anyone feeling uncomfy, let’s cover a few bases first:

This series does not imply these are ‘bad movies’ by any means
On the contrary, we love every movie on this list
If you do not recognize and discuss the biases, beliefs, and influences in the media you consume, that is fine too!
We find it increasingly important to analyze media under a lens of criticism and adoration, not one or the other

We hope you enjoy today’s introductory episode, and you’ll find our list of movies and where to watch them below. Be sure to comment and answer our questions in the poll on Spotify, and DM us on Instagram (@theindiemagandpod) with what you think of the episode, and our series. We’d love to hear what you think, and may include answers and responses from listeners.

Until then, happy listening!

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Militainment Watchalong Series — Movie List:

- Episode 1: INTRO

- Episode 2: THE RULE OF COOL

Transformers (2007): Watch on ⁠Paramount+⁠, or rent on VOD 

Battleship (2012): Rent on ⁠AppleTV+ ⁠or your favorite VOD

- Episode 3:

Top Gun (1986): Watch on ⁠Paramount+⁠, ⁠PlutoTV⁠,  or rent on VOD

Top Gun: Maverick (2022): Watch on ⁠Paramount+⁠, ⁠Prime⁠,  or rent on VOD

- Episode 4:

Pearl Harbor (2001): Watch now on ⁠Hulu⁠, ⁠Disney+⁠, ⁠Tubi⁠, or rent on VOD

Black Hawk Down (2002): Rent on ⁠Prime⁠,⁠ YouTube⁠, ⁠ AppleTV⁠, or your favorite VOD site

- Episode 5:

Iron Man (2008): Watch now on ⁠Disney+⁠, or rent on VOD

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011): Watch now on ⁠Disney+⁠ or rent on VOD 

Captain Marvel (2019): Watch now on ⁠Disney+⁠ or rent on VOD 

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Further Reading:

YouTube: "Join the ESD" video referenced in our episode
Shadowproof: "Documents: Inside The US Army’s Massive $2 Million Propaganda Campaign For ‘Independence Day’ Sequel"
US Army Case Study

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Intro Song: “MARCH OF THE DEMI QUAVERS”

Composers: STIX RANDOLPH

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Outro Song: “DRIVING FORCE”

Composer: Nicholas Robert Phoenix

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Thanks again for listening!