Smetti di farti fare questo ca**o di lavaggio del cervello

by Laura Dodsworth, Patrick Fagan, Rossana Pinna (Translator)

Aziende informatiche, grandi marchi, catene di supermercati: a colpi di campagne pubblicitarie e post sui social media, tutti ci spingono a pensare quello che vogliono loro, a comprare quello che vogliono loro, a essere quello che vogliono loro. Questo libro è uno strumento fondamentale per imparare a difendersi smascherando i trucchi e le strategie di manipolazione più comuni. Laura Dodsworth e Patrick Fagan, basandosi sulla loro esperienza, svelano al lettore tutti i meccanismi utili a influenzare i nostri gusti, i nostri desideri e il nostro pensiero critico, e spiegano quali sono le contromisure più efficaci da adottare. Dai messaggi subliminali veicolati sul web alle tecniche usate dai truffatori, dalla manipolazione delle informazioni da parte del mondo della politica alle insidiose ragnatele tessute dalle sette religiose: questo libro offre gli strumenti per riconoscere i pericoli e difendersi da ogni tentativo di lavaggio del cervello. Un libro per difendersi da chi insidia la nostra libertà di pensiero.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Self Help, Politics, Philosophy, Personal Development, Audiobook

377 pages, Paperback

First published July 20, 2023

About the author

Laura Dodsworth is an author, journalist, photographer and filmmaker and has been described as a ‘latter-day punchy Cassandra’ and a ‘Slayer of Taboos’. Her books Bare Reality: 100 women, their breasts, their stories, Manhood: The Bare Reality and Womanhood: The Bare Reality have attracted worldwide media coverage and excellent reviews.

Laura and the creation of Womanhood were the subject of a documentary for Channel 4, 100 Vaginas, which received 5 star reviews and has been broadcast around the world.

Her latest book is A State of Fear: how the UK government weaponised fear during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Reviews

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book that examines the manipulative tactics used by governments and the media to manipulate and adversely influence people. One of the best ways to innoculate yourself is to learn to read a lot, especially hard copy books where possible, in order to encourage critical thinking. Limiting screen time, being careful to avoid watching soap operas, remembering to not let down your guard when watching films, and fleeing from pornography and other such forms of decadence are also essential steps to keeping one's mind unpolluted. In situations where you cannot possibly analyse all the relevant information, you must use your common sense and gut instincts when you suspect that elites are manipulating you.

[Varma Shagun · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Fool me once, shame on you; Fool me twice, shame on me."

✓𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝑰 𝑫𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝑻𝒐 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝑰𝒕:
I decided to read this book because:
>I love reading self-help occasionally.
>I was intrigued by the kind of content this book holds.

✓𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕:
"Free Your Mind" works like a mind-map of techniques and guidelines which can help readers in overcoming and defeating brainwash and manipulation. The book how "Warfare is evolving; And all the world's a stage; Anything we touch is a weapon." with respect to mind reading, persuasion and provokation.

✓𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:
>Relevant cover and title.
>The fish pattern on the cover shows how we need to break free from the herd demeanor.

✓𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:
>Lucid language.
>Pointers have been used.
>Content backed up by citations, quotes, examples and book recommendations.

✓𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌:
>The book explains the basics of manipulation and how interrogation, government, media and ad agencies work. Insight on information control and time tracking has been provided too.
>Techniques of resisting persuasion and power of negotiation have been described too.
>Concise explanation on Dunning-Kruger Effect, Mozart Effect, etc. have been stated.
>The book shows how we can survive in this world of manipulation by critical thinking and mindful consumption of content.

✓𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒔:
>Non-Fiction.
>Self-help.
>Manipulation.
>Mind control.

✓𝑶𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒏:
Complicated yet significant concepts have been explained in a simple way. The content is easy to understand and relevant. This is an incredible book which should be on your radar.

[Gabe · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was excited to read this book because I’m fascinated with the topic. Unfortunately, the presentation is so extremely biased that it compromises the whole book. It is anti-tax, anti-vax, among other seemingly libertarian stances. I’m not sure exactly because they’re not upfront about these stances and are at their most awkward when trying profess to be accepting of trans people yet going into specifics to deny trans people exist. This subject could have been a perfect moment to address societal pressures and how that can affect trans people in many ways but instead described it as brainwashing people to become trans while ignoring so many more societal pressures to conform to binary expectations. They probably believe they deserve a medal because they feel some trans people aren’t brainwashed and that trans people deserve compassion. I wouldn’t mind if they were upfront about these stances (minus the anti-trans) but instead it comes across in all the examples including what they describe as “alleged” while happily stating “facts” like what 9/11 detainee Abu Zubaydah knew and didn’t know and the repeated falsehood about a frog in boiling water. Perhaps this is their clever way of trying to challenge the reader like how they added a duplicate word on purpose at one point but I can’t give them that much credit. Though dated, I highly recommend Cialdinni’s “Influence” over this.

[Steve · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t often write reviews of books but this one annoyed me so much that I’m going to warn others off it. The arguments put forward at the start are undermined or simply plain contradicted by the end. There are long, dull passages recounting retreats in overly emotive terms. And worst of all, the writers spend half the book grinding their personal axes about governmental responses to covid and vaccines, along with forays into climate scepticism and gender, using exactly the techniques they have been telling readers to guard against. I’d have forgiven them if they’d had a “and did you spot what we were doing?” at the end but the irony seems to have escaped them.

Avoid.

[Cyrus Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liberate Your Thoughts, Crush Manipulation!

"Free Your Mind: The New World of Manipulation and How to Resist It" is a book that everyone with a working cabbage should read. It deftly exposes the immoral practices of marketing, politics, and big tech in influencing our thoughts and attitudes. Because of the full references, fantastic narrative, and fascinating interviews, I read it twice before giving a review. If you want to start releasing yourself from manipulation, empowering yourself with critical thinking, and reclaiming control over your ideas, I suggest this book. Excellent work, indeed!

[Jennifer Bridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you know nothing about this subject this may be a good starter. It’s well written and easily digestible. However, I knew many of the examples given in the book leading to a perception on my part of unoriginality. Perhaps we read the same books or followed the same accounts? The result being that I didn’t feel I was reading something new but rather I was reading an excellent summary of everything I’d ever read or heard elsewhere (podcasts, Twitter, books) on the subject.

[Anirudh Kulkarni · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book surprised me. I thought it would be just another variation of 'affects of social media' on mind (my favorite guilty pleasure genre). But this book has many fascinating and useful insights on vulnerabilities of our minds and how they can be influenced irrespective of anyone's level of intelligence or street smartness. Though there is no in-depth discussion on any of the topics selected in the book, it provides enough information to do your own research. It might act as a wakeup call to people all over the world to start observing how governments and institutions make them act in a certain way, giving them an illusion that it was their own choice. The ideas in the book are interesting to read, although the overall writing and presentation could have been a bit more exhaustive, but it never takes away the fun of reading. It's a very important book that has a potential to change many lives in a positive way.

[miss c a shuter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Influences

This book dives deeply into the many layers of influence we are subjected to in our world. We are all at risk of being manipulated and one key piece of advice this book gives is to admit it when you realise that you are mistaken about something. This book is thought provoking and a powerful reminder of the importance of critical thinking.

[Burnard Morey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook version. So much to take in. I'm listening to it second time around, back to back. It's frightening how much propaganda and nudging we're subjected to every day. Governments are the worst offenders. If you like an easy life and believe ignorance is bliss—don't read this book. If you want to learn how you're propagandised and manipulated day in day out, this book is a must-read.

[Christine Hancock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you think you’re immune to the manipulation techniques used by retailers, advertisers, social media, governments, politicians and more, this book will open your eyes.
If you feel like you’re been bamboozled and manipulated, it’s because you are…
This book is packed with examples, evidence and musings to help you navigate the minefield and protect your mind.

[Corporate Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

First two thirds are full of good stuff but the last third really drags and repeatedly makes the same point. Almost ruins it.

[Dave Bass · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eye opening, confirms what we already new about

[Sindhu Vinod · Rating 4 out of 5]

The mind is a powerful organ that can trick you easily. But it also is not a difficult task to trick and manipulate it. This book from Laura Dodsworth and Patrick Fagan is something that people of this time don’t think much about deciding but straight away arrive at a decision must read.
It is more frequent that we fall into the trap of deciding on something without thinking whether we actually are in need. Now that influencers are the biggest manipulators, we need to be immune to our minds without wavering thoughts. Nowadays people know how to inject thoughts into people's minds to make them fall for it. The book explains a lot of phenomena that might seem new but actually, something we are experiencing.
Strategies used by corporations, and advertisements are examined, and professionals in mind control namely monk's conversations illuminate their methods of control. The book lets you know about the seemingly convincing tricks that are used on us and how we need to have control over the brain to not fall for it. If you are someone who is easily convincing, then this book is for you. This book will provide you with tools that help you regain control of your mind through critical thinking.
Their writing style is clear to make you understand the knowledge and the opinions of both authors. Examples and analysis are both available so that readers of all sorts stay engaged. This enlightening and thought-provoking book is a must-read that helps in understanding the complexities in this world.

[Martin Castle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book or more accurately a manual for “Modern Life”. There is so much information here in each chapter it’s difficult to take it all in so the Rules at the end of each chapter that condense the main points to focus on are really useful. I gave up watching the tv news and reading a newspaper nearly four years ago to protect my mental health and I don’t regret it neither do I regret coming off all social media. You have to work a little harder to find out about what’s going on in areas that interest you but it’s worth it and this book will help you along the way.

[Trevor Vick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The premise is that we need to be always on our guard as individuals and organisations - commercial and governmental - aim to manipulate and mislead us. If this is not already obvious to us - sufficient convincing evidence is presented to persuade us that this is the case. An authoritative course on critical thinking.

[Mr Alister Cryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book trod territory which other writers had trod but, like the professor/magician the authors refer to said things in a way that challenged the reader to think mindfully about psychic defence. Having dealt with sex I felt the authors started to run out of interesting things to say and the last few chapters seemed more padding and trite than what otherwise had been an interesting read.

[Mika Auramo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Johdanto

Laura Dodsworthin ja Patrick Faganin yhdessä kirjoittama opus ”Free Your Mind: The must-read expert guide on how to identify techniques to influence you and how to resist them” on oivallinen tietokirja jokaiselle, joka haluaa kehittää kriittistä ajatteluaan ja tunnistaa mielenhallinta- ja psykologisia operaatioita, joiden armoilla olemme aivan jatkuvasti, kunhan panemme telkkarin päälle tai nappaamme kännykän näytölle jonkin somesovelluksen. Kirjoittajat kutsuvat teosta “kenttäoppaaksi” (field manual), kuinka harjoittaa nykyisessä ”sotatilassa” omaa mieltä selviytyäksemme.

Peräti kahdessakymmenessä luvussa neuvotaan ensin tietoiseksi tulemisesta meihin kohdistuvista monenkirjavista propaganda- ja aivopesukampanjoista aina viihteellisiin tuputtamis- ja suosittelusisältöihin (nudge), joita emme useinkaan osaa tunnistaa manipuloinniksi. Harva tulee ajatelleeksi saippuaoopperoiden ja tosi-tv-ohjelmien sosiaalista manipulaatiota (social engineering), jos kyttäämme tuotantokaudesta toiseen jotain ”Modernia perhettä” tai erotiikkaa tihkuvia deittiohjelmia, taloremonteista ja asunnonvaihto-ohjelmista puhumattakaan. Neuvotaan myös tulemaan immuuniksi erilaisille manöövereille, säännöstelemään somen ja median käyttöä valikoimalla sisällöt itselle sopivaksi ja lopettamaan lopulta kokonaan olemaan altistumatta ”Ison veljen” vaikuttamispyrkimyksille. Lopuksi vielä opastetaan, kuinka nousta barrikadeille ja avaamaan silmänsä kohti omia illuusioita, ei siis muiden luomia valhekuvia ja -kuvaelmia, jotka vaikuttavat enemmän dystopioilta, mikäli esimerkiksi globalistieliitin tavoitteita halutaan tarkastella tavallisen kansalaisen näkökulmasta.

Tekijöiden mukaan kirjan on tarkoitus saada lukijat tajuamaan, että hänen mielensä on nykyään infosodan taistelukenttä. Sotilassanastoa ja vanhoja hyviksi havaittuja aivopesutekniikoita on käytetty onnistuneesti jo Korean sodan ajoista lähtien, ja varsinkin länsimaissa tiedustelupalvelut CIA:sta alkaen ovat runnoneet jo vuosikymmenestä toiseen yhä kehittyneempiä tekniikoita, joista viimeisimpiä ovat korona- ja ilmastokultteihin liittyvät mielenhallintaoperaatiot Net-Zero-hokemisineen. Palataan muutamissa sopivissa kohdin Edward Barnaysiin, William Sargantiin ja Edward Hunteriinkin, jotka ovat informaatiovaikuttamisen uranuurtajia.

Mikä ihmeen nudge?

Sosiaalinen manipulointi on ubiikkia ja jatkuvaa, ja sellaista hyödynnetään taitavasti myös poliittisiin tarkoituksiin. Dodsworth kertoo brittihallituksen UK’s Behavioural Insights Teamistä eli Nudge unitista, joka toimii mielenhallintaoperaatioissa eli kansalaisten ohjelmointikampanjoissa. Tällainen vehkeily ei ole luonteeltaan pakottavaa, vaan erinäisin keinoin tarjoillaan vaivihkaisia suosituksia ilman keskustelua tai vastakkainasettelua tarkoituksena muuttaa käyttäytymistä menetelmillä, joista vastaanottaja ei osaa olla tietoinen. Siten muovataan salakähmäisesti asenteita, persoonallisuutta ja alitajuntaakin.

Tätä nudgingia eli hienovaraista tuputtamista kohtaamme päivittäin mennessämme markettiin ja katsoessamme televisiosta tavallista tosi-tv-ohjelmaa. Eri maissahan on tarkoituksella pantu kassalinjojen kylkeen tuotteita, joita voi ikään kuin napata hihnalle, ja hetken mielijohteesta otetaan karkkipatukat ja ennen vanhaan poimittiin tupakka-askit ostoksiin mukaan käden ulottuvilta, ja Andorrassa livahtavat tarjousviskit ja muut verovapaat väkevät kyytiin kuin itsestään. Omasta mökistään haaveileva voi ottaa oppia julkkisten sadan tonnin remontista, jotta saa kesähuvilansa ajanmukaiseksi ja jotta sinne kehtaa vieraitakin kutsua. Jos oma rantapaikka on vielä haaveissa, sen voi toteuttaa ottamalla lainaa niin paljon kuin pankista irtoaa. Sitten voikin rentoutua korkojen noustessa ja pohtia auvoista strömsöläistä saaristolaisidylliä ja yrittää vaikka väkisin ottaa ilon irti rentoutumishetkistään ajamalla luonnon helmaan liisatulla täyssähkö-Volvolla. Yli varojen eläminen alkoikin yllätyksellisesti, kun langettiin luontoidylliä ja maalaisromantiikkaa pursuavaan mielenhallintaohjelmaan (ihan tavallinen mökkiremonttiohjelma!) ja kun rajattua huomio- ja harkintakykyämme tuupittiin haluttuun suuntaa – unohtamatta kadehdittavan naapurin ainaisia reissuja omaan kesäparatiisiinsa.

Mediaviihteen suurkuluttajan on hyvä olla tietoinen, että usein hauskoissa hupailuohjelmissa ja TikTok-videoissa on monenlaista suostuttelua. Vastaanottamamme informaatio muokkaa tapaamme hahmottaa maailmaa, ja mairittelua voidaan tehdä joko suoraan tai peitellyn epäsuorasti meidän ”taivuttelemiseksemme” toimimaan halutulla tavalla. Yleensä valtavirtauutisetkin raottavat ruutujemme äärestä maailmaa sen verran kuin meille avataan näköalaa Overtonin ikkunasta, kuinka valtaapitävät katsovat tarpeelliseksi. Tarpeeton ja haitallinen eri narratiivin mukainen sisältö voidaankin sitten jättää näyttämättä tai sensuroida kokonaan ihmisten mieliä pilaamasta.
Myös viihdettä ja dokumentteja tv-sarjoista Hollywood- ja Netflix-spektaakkeleihin on käytetty monipuoliseen metaohjelmointiin niin, etteivät katsojat useinkaan tule edes ajatelleeksi joutuneensa aivopesuyritysten kohteiksi. Monille tutun lastensarjan Teletappienkin on väitetty sisältäneen genderpropagandaa antenneineen ja värisymboleineen. Erotiikkaa tihkuvat parimuodostus-tosi-tv-sarjat kannustavat kevytmielisiin seksisuhteisiin rapauttaen sukupuolimoraalia. Yhdysvaltojen puolustusvoimatkin on sponsoroinut iät ja ajat amerikkalaisia sotaelokuvia Top Gunista ja vastaavista lähtien. Vastustajat ovat vain muuttuneet kylmän sodan ajoista, ja maailmanpoliisin statusta pyritään pönkittämään väkivaltaviihteen keinoin.

Oma lukunsa on supersankarinarratiivi (Batman ja vastaava rikas eliitti), jolloin nämä yksilöt ottavat lain omiin käsiinsä, ja tavallisten kansalaisten ja viranomaisten rooli on vain pysytellä taustalla ja poissa jaloista hyvän ja pahan välisessä arkkityyppisessä taistelussa. Hyvänä esimerkkinä toimii myös menestyssarja Fifty Shades of Gray, jossa eroottinen tarina on puettu uusiin hepeniin. Siinä pornoa käytetään psykologisena aseena ja alistamisen välineenä: ostaahan tässä miljonääri leikkikalukseen nuoren naisen, jonka on täysin tukahdutettava itsensä ja alistuttava eliittiä symboloivan hyväksikäyttäjän tahtoon.

Somesta Metaverseen

Harva tulee ajatelleeksi, kuinka tietoista ajattelumme ja toimintamme oikeastaan onkaan. Ihmisen aistien tarkoituksellinen ohjaaminen ja ajatteluprosessit ovat ehkä muutaman prosentin kymmenestuhannesosa psykofyysisestä kokonaisuudestamme, eli emme mitenkään pysty tietoisesti käsittelemään kaikkea ympärillämme olevaa informaatiota kehon liikkeistä aina näköaistin meille välittämään kuvavirtaan, joka kulkeutuu lopulta aivojemme tulkittavaksi mielikuvainstallaatioksi. Hallitusten takapirut ja somemaailman ohjelmoitujen bottien kehittäjät ja suosittelualgoritmien koodaajat kyllä tietävät, millaiset manipulointikampanjat ja indoktrinaatio uppoavat kohteisiinsa, kun yhden dataismin profeetan eli Yoval Noah Hararin mukaan ihmiset ovat nykyään lähinnä vain hakkeroitavia elukoita.

Nettikäyttäytymistä ohjaavien algoritmien toimintaperiaatteet ovat palveluiden käyttäjien tavoittamattomissa, ja harva niitä tulee pohtineeksikaan. Koska algoritmien funktio on meiltä piilossa, perussomettaja saattaa pitää niitä ikään kuin ”virtuaalisina enkeleinä” ja jopa oman digi-identiteetin mystisenä jatkeena, joka tuo tarjolle uusia uutissisältöjä ja kavereitakin kivasti tekoälyn avittamana. Moni miettiikin jo somepostauksia tehdessään, että ne ovat ”algoritmisystävällisiä” ja etteivät ne loitonna itseään muusta samankaltaisten yhteisöstä sisältöineen ja tunnisteineen. Lisäksi iso osa nykytallaajista pitää sosiaalista mediaa (ja nuoriso tätä kirjoitettaessa TikTokia) tärkeimpänä uutislähteenään ja jopa kuvittelee sieltä imitoitujen sisältöjen olevan omaa ajatteluaan.
Nykyään [vuonna 2023] Facebookilla ja varsinkin Mark Zuckerbergilla taustaryhmineen on ollut vakaa tarkoitus koukuttaa meitä yhä tiukemmin alustoihinsa, jotta siirtyminen virtuaalimaailman seuraavalle etapille sujuisi kivuttomammin, ja kyseessähän on tietysti metatodellisuus, siis metaversumi, niin kuin sitä tavataan kutsua. Enää ei riitä, että ihmiset alkavat muistuttaa sekä sisäisesti ja ulkoisesti luomaansa ihannekuvaa itsestään etäystävien, faniensa, manipulaattoriensa ja algoritmien mieliksi, kun toimitaan itseään nettimarkkinoiden sisältö- ja viihdepalveluissa. Metaversumia mainostetaan eräänlaisena ”maanpäällisenä” paratiisina, jossa jokainen voi olla sellainen kuin haluaa tai muka ”oikeasti” tuntee olevansa. Tällaisessa höperössä illuusiossa kaikki tietoisuuden virrat kokkaillaan symboliseksi noutopöydäksi, josta tulee eräänlainen totuuden jälkeinen keinotekoinen virtuaalitodellisuus. Se on täynnä meille syötettyä salamyhkäistä symboliikkaa, joka hahmottuu uudenlaiseksi ”todellisuudeksi” eikä aivojemme tulkitsemaksi ja aistiemme havaitsemasta tosielämän reaalitodellisuudesta – siis mielemme ulkoisesta maailmasta. Tällöin kytkemme itsemme irti omasta sisäisestä olemuksestamme (mukaan lukien unet ja alitajunta) ja sulaudumme meille luotuun tekoälyn ja algoritmien säätämään ”fantasiatodellisuuteen”. Jo nykyään massamanipulointi hoituu stimuloimalla neurologista järjestelmäämme ja hormonitasapainoa niin nanobottien kuin aivokemiaan kohdistettujen hyökkäystenkin avulla, jolloin muokataan ajatuksia, tunteita, havaintoja ja jopa yksilön elintoimintoja etäohjauksella.

Matkailukin sujuu kuin itsestään, kun kehittyneempi tekoäly (AGI) kuljettaa meidät etelän lomakohteisiin, vaikka fyysisesti kyyhötämme vaatimattomassa vuokramurjussamme. Kun vielä lisätään skitsofreeninen käsitys sukupuoli-identiteetistä, ei ole mikään ihme, jos yksilö kuvittelee olevansa jotain muuta kuin oma biologinen sukupuoli ilmentäisi. Viimeistään tässä vaiheessa aivopesun kohde kuvittelee olevansa jonkinlainen häneen iskostettujen ihannefantasioiden ja ryhmän paineen tai nettiyhteisön toiveiden mukainen virtuaaliavatar häivyttämällä oman identiteettinsä, fyysisen minänsä ja uniikin persoonallisuutensa täydellisesti.

Salamitekniikasta poliittiseen vaikuttamiseen

Mátyás Rákosin kuuluisa salamitekniikka toisen maailmansodan jälkeen kommunistisessa Unkarissa on otettu monesti käyttöön myöhemminkin. Sitä on sanottu ihan samantyyppiseksi kiduttamiseksi kuin elävän sammakon heittämistä kattilaan, jonka vettä lämmitetään kiehuvaksi vähitellen, ettei raukka tajua loppunsa tulleen. Mikäli otuksen viskoo kiehuvaan veteen, se saattaa äkätä vaaran ja pompata liemestä vapauteen. Rákos klikkeineen painosti hivuttamalla ikävää oppositiota vähän samaan tapaan kuin meille markkinoitiin vuosina 2021–2022 koronarokotuksia ja injektioista saatavaa digitaalista todistusta ”vapauspassina” kaiken muun pakottamisen ja pelottelun lisäksi. Pienin askelin rajoitusten tiukentamisesta aina sensuurista sananvapauden rapauttamiseen on lopulta valtava kumulatiivinen vaikutus, jollainen isolla osalla jää kokonaan tajuamatta – ennen kuin on jo liian myöhäistä.

Lisäksi erilaiset auktoriteetit käyttävät mielellään yksipuolista argumentointia, jollaisesta vastaväitteet on häivytetty olemattomiin, ja usein vielä sellaisten esittäjät tehdään naurunalaisiksi ”foliohattuisiksi” salaliittoteoreetikoiksi, sillä nämä julkeavat asettua oppositioon ja jopa olla eri mieltä. Tällaiset pilkalliset nimitykset kuuluvat osana ”peliin”, ja usein juuri vastakkaisen narratiivin esittäjiä on lupa pilkata idiootteina, koska heidän argumenttejaan halutaan pitää vahvistamattomina, epäuskottavina, kummallisina ja täysin tarpeettomina.

Carl Popperin lanseerattua salaliittoteoriakäsitteen 1950-luvulla ”väärinajattelijat” on ollut helppo leimata ongelmatapauksiksi, joiden höpinät pitäisi saada tukahdutettua keinolla millä hyvänsä. Tätä porukkaa onkin nimitetty nykyajan kerettiläisiksi, ja aika monesti nämä niin sanotut teoriat ovatkin osoittautuneet jopa faktoiksi. Toisinajattelijoiden nöyryyttämisessä ja manipuloinnin keskeisenä instrumenttina on juuri kieli ja uudissanat sekä muokattu käsitys historiasta, kunhan ne sopivat meneillä olevaan agendaan.

Niin kuin on huomattu, helposti yksi jos toinenkin poliitikko saattaa kimpaantua, jos häntä menee nimittämään populistiksi tai puheen olevan lähinnä propagandaa ja jopa misinformaatiota. Tällöin voidaan puhua naiivista realismista tai sellaisen esittämisestä, kun mukaan lisätään vielä metapropagandaa. Toisin sanoen jonkun puolueen edustaja ja hänen kannattajansa saattavat pitää oman puolueohjelman mukaista käsitystä maailmasta arvoineen jotenkin oikeana ja objektiivisena, vaikka se vain suodattuu oman opportunistisen ja ideologisen ajattelun lävistämänä.
Metapropagandaa tarvitaan tietysti, että saadaan yleisö uskomaan, että meidän puolueessamme ja meidän tavallamme ymmärretään maailma jotenkin reiluna, todenmukaisena ja oikeana ja että toisen poliittisen laidan kannattajien käsitys on valheellinen ja epätosi. Heidän mätä puoluelehtensäkään ei muuta julkaise kuin valeuutisia, joissa totta ei ole niteeksikään.


Harhaluuloja informaatiovaikuttamisesta

Moni itseään älykkäänä pitävä yksilö lankeaa ihan yhtä helposti niin kuin pöljempikin lajitoverinsa monien aivopesukampanjoiden pauloihin, kun ei osaa tunnistaa manipulointikeinoja ja –virheitä. Dunning–Kruger-efektikin (eli ylivertaisuusvinouma) on sellainen, että uskotaan olevan niin fiksu, ettei voi olla väärässä tai harhaanjohdettu. Filosofi Nassim Taleb kutsuu tällaisia ihmisiä älykkäiksi idiooteiksi. Toisaalta tyhmempi pulliainen saattaa luulotella ajattelunsa ja tietopääomansa olevan enemmän kuin se todellisuudessa onkaan ja siksi tekee ihan samat virheet kuin älykkökin. Kun sopivasti vielä käytetään pelottelua, fiksuus voi kääntyä itseä vastaan, varsinkin kun sitä vahvistavaa persoonallisuutta ja tietopääomaa ei kehitetä tai jos se on ihan heiveröinen. Tällöin perusteettomia uskomuksia ja tieteistämistä aletaan pitää ihan tosiasioina.

Tavallista on käyttää informaation vääristelyssä rajattua näkökulmaa ja disinformaatiota, kun hyvesignaloidaan jonkin poliittisen agendan edistämiseksi, jotta saadaan kansalaiset toimimaan ja ajattelemaan halutunlaisesti. Kaasuvalottaminen, syrjiminen ja pakottaminen kuulostavat ikäviltä asioilta, mutta kun jatkuvasti toistetaan vaikkapa viestiä vastuullisuudesta, kestävästä kehityksestä, oman mitättömän hiilijalanjäljen kutistamisesta ja muista ilmastonmuutoksen hillintään liittyvistä tempuista, suuri enemmistö alkaa jopa uskoa, että omilla toimilla olisi jotain merkitystä.

Harva kuitenkaan viitsii ajatella asioita pintaa syvemmältä ja perehtyä väitettyyn ilmastohätätilaan tutustumalla tieteellisiin faktoihin, kun ei vaivauduta ajattelemaan, pitävätkö meille esitetyt kauhukuvat paikkansa. Moni tosiaan tuntuu uskovan senkin, että ilmakehän vesihöyryn hiilidioksidi olisi samaa kuin hiili ja samanveroista kuin fossiilisten polttoaineiden hiiliyhdisteet. Neil Postman kuvaakin vahvasti kehystettyä ja rajattua disinformaatiota harhaanjohtavaksi tiedoksi. Se on usein hyvin pinnallista, pirstoutunutta ja jopa irrelevanttia, ja se luo harhakuvitelman, että tiedämme asiasta jotain, mutta itse asiassa se johtaakin paradoksaalisesti etäälle tietämisestä, asiakokonaisuuksien hahmottamista ja syvemmästä ymmärtämisestä. Hyvin harvalla on kuitenkaan omia mielipiteitä satunnaisesti seuraamistaan media-aiheista, ja harvoin edes yritetään sellaista koostaa eri lähteistä, jotta aiheesta muodostuisi edes jollain tavalla eri näkökulmat huomioiva näkemys.

Monesti television uutisissakin on enemmän sääntö kuin poikkeus, että jokaisessa illan päälähetyksessä ainakin yksi juttu jotenkin kytketään väitettyyn ilmastohätätilaan ja kannustetaan katsojia tarkkailemaan ja vähentämään hiilijalanjälkeään, ikään kuin 0,4% (tai hiukan suurempi) hiilidioksidin määrä ilmakehässä vaikuttaisi ilmaston lämpenemiseen. Niin sanottua vihreää siirtymää hehkutetaan ja houkutellaan (nudging) muuttamaan omaa elämäntyyliä, kun ilmastoaktivistit ja valtavirtamedia säestävät vahvasti omine fanfaareineen.

Loppukaneetti

Lopussa vielä kirjan tekijät jaksavat muistuttaa, että aivopesun tarkoitus on korvata ihmisen oma psyyke sinne istutetulla. Meille tarjoillaan siis pieninä annospaloina ja myös vaivihkaa tuputtamalla aivopesua tukevaa propagandaa siten, että uhrilla säilyy mahdollisimman pitkään harhaluulo, että hänellä olisi todellista valtaa päättää asioistaan ja hänellä olisi autonomia tehdä omia päätöksiä ja valintoja. Siksi pitääkin kehittää ymmärrystään ”sotatilassa”, jottei loiki kuten säikyt sopulit kaltaistensa virrassa jonkin uhan painostaessa. Yleensähän kiusaajat ja huijarit jättävät rauhaan ne, jotka ovat valveutuneita sekä fyysisesti että henkisesti riittävän vahvoja.

Kun meitä on riittävästi peloteltu terveyden, aseman, ystävien ja kumppaninkin menettämisellä, ei ole ihme, jos yksilön mielenterveys alkaa horjua ja hän altistuu helposti mitä hulluimpien aivopesukampanjoiden armoille vailla mitään omaa harkintaa. Siksi onkin tärkeää pyrkiä vahvistamaan omaa psyykkistä kivijalkaa, hankkia vaikkapa aiheista lisää tieteellistä tietoa ja perustaa omat ratkaisunsa enemmän faktoihin kuin huuhaahan. Jos vielä ei ole omaa ideologista perustaa ja omaa arvomaailmaa, joku toinen tyhjän tilan tulee täyttämään. Jos ollaan pinnallisia fantasioita jäljitteleviä sisäisesti onttoja pissiksiä ohuine somekuorineen, joku tulee tyrkyttämään täytettä vaikkapa jollakin genderideologian täyteisellä kulttuurimarxismilla. Tähän kun vielä lisätään heikko itse- ja omanarvontunto, ei ole mikään ihme, että ollaan helposti aivopestävissä, ja oma minuus halutaan sulauttaa kollektiiviin ihan niin kuin jossain kommunistisessa puoluejärjestelmässä, kollektiivisessa organisaatiossa tai jonkin -ismin häivyttäessä yksilön alkuperäisen identiteetin olemattomiin.

Kirjassa tarjoillaan hyviä konsteja, joilla voi vaikuttaa omaan informaatiotulvaansa, ja lopulta paras keino on tietysti olla kokonaan altistumatta ei-toivotuille vaikutteille. Moni tekeekin virheen yrittäessään lähteä haastamaan tuputettua agendaa ja joutuu harharetkelleen niin kuin modernin ajan digi-Don Quijote algoritmien ja tekoälyn rakentamia tuulimyllyjä ja lammaslaumoja vastaan. Silti monet meille törkityt ideat jäävät tajuntaamme itämään, vaikka kuinka tietoinen mieli haluaa itsellemme vakuuttaa, että kaikki siihen operaatioon kuuluva olisi pelkkää humpuukia. Näkemästämme saattaa tulla meille vähitellen tuttua ja ihan normaalia naposteltavaa, vaikka tahtoisimme olla eri mieltä – viipale kerrallaan.

Teksti on lyhennelmä, ja alkuperäinen on blogissa.

https://www.blogi.lyseo.org/wp/2024/0...

[Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Know your mind, change your mind and free your mind. A very comprehensive study on various kinds of tactics and tricks to manipulate your mind and how to mitigate them, especially for newbies like me.
I want to give it 5 stars but the book lacks of indexes so I need to take one star off.

[Joana Matos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read! Great book on propaganda, well researched and well argued.

[Justin Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

FREE YOUR MIND: HOW TO RESIST MANIPULATION IN A WORLD OF INFLUENCE.
Free Your Mind: The New World Of Manipulation By Laura Dodsworth And Patrick Fagan is a fascinating look at how we are being manipulated every day, by media, politicians and by companies that want to manipulate and sell us ideas and products
THE AGE OF MANIPULATION:
- We are being manipulated every day — by advertisers, governments, media, and even one another. One of the most unsettling insights of Free Your Mind is that those who believe they are immune to manipulation are often the most vulnerable. The modern world is a constant battle for our attention, beliefs, and behaviour, and unless we become aware of these forces, we risk being controlled without even realising it.
THE LIMITS OF ATTENTION
- Human attention is astonishingly limited. Classic experiments, like the “invisible gorilla” study — where people counting basketball passes often miss a gorilla walking across the court — reveal how easily our focus can be hijacked. Manipulators exploit this weakness: while our attention is elsewhere, they insert messages that shape what we buy, believe, and fear. Advertising, political messaging, and even public-health campaigns all rely on this principle. Some of these influences may be harmless or even helpful — but others are not.
- When a fight has taken place in the park that people have ran past, up to 80% of people failed to notice it if their attention is elsewhere and the idea of people who manipulate your brain have to work on that attention deficit and although we are bombarded every day by hundreds of adverts it takes a special manipulation, but that is what advertisers and government are all trying make us slaves, into buying a product or selling a certain idea which sometimes can be beneficial and sometimes not.
BUILDING PSYCHOLOGICAL RESISTANCE
- The authors argue that we are effectively at war for control of our minds. To resist, we must develop psychological resilience — learning how persuasion works so we can recognise it when it’s used against us. Awareness itself is power. Just as sunlight disinfects, understanding manipulative tactics helps prevent us from being duped.
- One of the most effective ways of reducing the impact of someone trying to brainwash you. It's just to simply not engage and experiments that have been shown to be the most effective approach.
- An old parable about wild hogs illustrates this point. Farmers once lured clever pigs with peanuts into a corral. Over time, as the pigs grew comfortable, the farmers quietly built fences until the animals were trapped. Humans, too, can be tamed by comfort and familiarity — by “free peanuts” in the form of convenience, entertainment, and constant digital stimulation.
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PERSUASION
- Manipulation often works best through small, incremental steps. Marketers and governments use a “foot-in-the-door” technique — if you say yes to two simple questions (“Do you care about your family? Do you want to protect them?”), you’re more likely to agree to a third (“Would you like home insurance?”).
- This principle underpins much social behaviour, as demonstrated by the Stanley Milgram experiment. Participants, instructed by an authority figure, continued to administer electric shocks to another person — even when they believed the shocks were dangerous. The lesson: obedience and incremental escalation can override moral judgment.
- The Asch conformity studies and Zimbardo’s prison experiment further showed how easily ordinary people conform or adopt roles that contradict their values when influenced by authority or group pressure.
- The social psychologist Solomon Asch once said, ‘The greater man’s ignorance of the principles of his social surroundings, the more subject is he to their control; and the greater his knowledge of their operations and of their necessary consequences, the freer he can become with regard to them.’
- Psychology is no longer just about diagnosing or fixing us, it is now about socially engineering and shaping us. If you don’t control your mind, someone else will.
COGNITIVE BIASES AND ILLUSIONS
- Our brains use shortcuts — useful for survival but easily exploited. The Dunning-Kruger effect shows that those with limited knowledge often overestimate their understanding, making them resistant to correction. Even brilliant minds are not immune: Steve Jobs, despite his genius, rejected conventional cancer treatment in favour of homeopathy — a fatal error of misplaced belief.
- An example of this might be that the majority of rapist are men and yet also the majority of men are not rapists.
- We also interpret the same information differently depending on our biases: one person’s “riot” is another’s “protest.” Like the parable of the blind men describing an elephant, we each perceive only fragments of truth.
SENSORY AND EMOTIONAL MANIPULATION
- Manipulation isn’t only intellectual — it’s sensory. Supermarkets pump the smell of fresh bread or coffee to increase sales. Bars play specific music to encourage customers to drink more. Our senses are gateways into our subconscious, and when paired with emotional imagery, they bypass reason entirely.
- Images, in particular, are powerful. Humans evolved to process visual cues long before language. A photograph of a war casualty stirs more empathy than statistics ever could. In the age of artificial intelligence and deepfakes, this emotional manipulation has become more potent — and more dangerous.
- The emotional route tends to come into play when a message is presented visually. Our ancestors have had eyes for over 500 million years, whereas we have only had speech for the last 50 thousand and writing for the last four thousand. Images engage our so-called lizard brains, whereas words have to contend with our rational brains. Is it any wonder that a study found that newspaper stories about Iraq war casualties elicited greater emotional responses and lower support for continued US presence when they were accompanied by photographs?
SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE ATTENTION ECONOMY
- The book devotes significant attention to how social media algorithms manipulate us. Every like, scroll, and pause teaches platforms how to capture us more effectively. Over time, these systems learn our desires better than our spouses do. They feed us confirmation bias — information that reinforces what we already believe — and slowly erode our ability to think critically.
- Short-form content, like TikTok videos, has reduced our attention spans and deepened our addiction to constant stimulation. Notifications hijack our dopamine circuits, making us compulsively check our phones. The authors suggest that to truly reclaim our presence, we must learn to be still — to be “bored,” to talk to people face-to-face, and to read rather than scroll.
- The book looks at the ever-increasing number of people who now identify as trans and how in studies many parents report that as a child they never shown this kind of leaning towards changing sex. But many people who now want to transition their gender seem to have had an increased use in the Internet prior to their decision to become transitioning into another gender. One of the authors then looks at how it is that if somebody does choose or wants to become trans and put a message up on the media what happens next. And it's interesting to see how the Internet does change and manipulate some of these ideas.
LANGUAGE, FRAMING, AND THE ILLUSION OF CHOICE
- Modern political and corporate messaging often relies on carefully framed language. Slogans like “Make America Great Again” or “Build the Wall” appeal to emotion rather than reason. Even online “choices,” such as privacy consent boxes, are often designed to steer us toward the preferred option.
- As Solomon Asch observed, ignorance of how social influence works makes us more susceptible to control — but understanding it gives us freedom.
SEX, DESIRE, AND POWER
- “Everything in the world is about sex, except sex, which is about power.” Sexual imagery has long been a manipulative tool. Experiments show that repeated exposure to erotic images can condition arousal responses to unrelated stimuli — a technique exploited by advertisers to associate products with desire.
FEAR, LONELINESS, AND THE SEARCH FOR MEANING
- Fear is perhaps the most effective tool of manipulation. In times of crisis or uncertainty, people seek security — even at the cost of freedom. The psychoanalyst Eric Hoffer described this in The True Believer: those who feel empty or powerless are easily swept up in mass movements, from fascism to modern populism.
- Eric Hoffer and the true believer explores how when people are angry or poor, feel hard done by, and afraid, they become empty vessels that are easily manipulated. This has given rise to such movements as the Nazis, and other areas of concern right now being spun by the people who are following Donald Trump in America and the significant changes in their values and ideologies in America, moving from democratic rule to some sort of authoritarian rule. It’s what Donald Trump stokes and wants and we see it also occurring in China, Russia and many other countries throughout the world as well as in the west.
- An empty person is the perfect vessel for brainwashing. Psychoanalyst Carl Jung wrote that collective identities, such as memberships of organisations, support of -isms and so on are ‘shields for the timid’, and that a feeling of meaninglessness puts a man on the road to state slavery.
- Man is constantly in search of meaning and purpose and when these become stripped bare, they will often seek and find the community or tribe that speaks their feelings even though these can then be easily manipulated but when you're afraid, full of fear or poor, then it's easy to manipulate these people.
- Professor Mattias Desmet’s theory of “mass formation” explains how loneliness and disconnection make people vulnerable to propaganda. When anxious or purposeless, individuals find comfort in belonging to a collective cause — even if it leads to intolerance or totalitarianism.
- Carl Jung warned that collective identities can become “shields for the timid” — ways to hide from individuality and meaninglessness. The emptier we feel, the easier we are to control.
- Fear is a powerful approach to manipulating people if using psychology affair and when people feel that they are afraid of something or the world has been turned upside down it is very easy for them to grasp at anything but straws which often contain nothing but that you will seek and find these approaches to help you, but so that you are easily manipulated into buying and reinstall something that you may not necessarily need. There’s a famous quote: if you want to change the world first, you must conquer yourself.
MEMORY AND RECALL
- A good example of how easy it is to manipulate people’s minds and alter their memories was shown in Elizabeth Loftus experiment where people are shown a picture of a car crash. participants watch a film about a car accident, and a week later they were quizzed on what they remembered. Participants were asked if they saw any broken glass (which there wasn’t); some were asked how fast the cars were going when they ‘hit’ each other, while others were asked how fast the cars were going when they ‘smashed into’ each other. In the ‘hit’ condition, 7 per cent of participants claimed to remember broken glass, compared with 16 per cent in the ‘smashed’ condition. Memories were reconstructed in real time according to the information that was fed in. Today, psychologists call this the ‘misinformation effect’. The implication is that you turn into what you tune into; or, as the philosopher Epictetus said, ‘You become what you give your attention to.’
RECLAIMING FREEDOM OF MIND
- To resist manipulation, the authors recommend cultivating self-awareness and emotional control. Practices like journaling in the third person, or short meditations focusing on a single object, can create mental distance from one’s emotions and sharpen critical thought.
Recognising fear triggers, questioning emotional reactions, and limiting sensory overload all help strengthen psychological independence. By understanding the tactics of influence — and our own vulnerabilities — we can regain control over what captures our attention and shapes our beliefs.
- We can all have ideas about we can all look at the same scene, for example of a crowd and some people will view it as an unruly mob and other people might view the same picture as a peaceful demonstration; we bring our own perspectives by our beliefs and ideologies to the same scene and can view this in many different ways and it's something to be aware of.
THE EMPERORS’ NEW CLOTHES
- The book tells the story of the Emperor's new clothes and how everybody doesn't want to appear stupid at the fact that the Emperor has no clothes at all because apparently, he's got an invisible garment, and it only takes a child to shout out ‘he's not wearing any clothes’ to finally break the spell. Many of us are like sheep and I herded into following what others believe and do and how they themselves act. It's important sometimes just to be aware of these things, to try and then think something different because that's how the majority of great ideas always end up being informed by somebody who is an outlier and goes against the grain of what everybody else might think.
- And yet it's also important to know that conformity, community and social cohesion are what have made societies and cultures grow and form, so it's ying and Yang in many ways.
CONCLUSION
- There are useful summaries at the end of each chapter to help you on your way to be in less manipulated by the world around you, constantly seeking your attention to buy their product or idea. This book will help to arm you with lots of ideas and how you can help yourself to be less manipulated by others.
- Free Your Mind is both a warning and a toolkit. It reminds us that psychology is no longer just about healing individuals — it’s about shaping societies. In a world designed to distract, seduce, and divide, awareness is the first act of rebellion. As the authors conclude: if you don’t control your own mind, someone else will.

[Johan · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is presented as a way to learn about how manipulation works and how you can resist being manipulated by ads, political campaigns and other people. Interesting subject.

What I got was these two doofuses talking about how the lockdowns during COVID was an attempt at social engineering by the government.
And how we are being manipulated into blindly accepting facts just because they come from "experts", when we should instead do our own research. You mean like holocaust deniers who have done their own research from sites like Stormfront?

What really got to me was how at the end of every chapter there are some tips on how to resist these manipulation tactics. So lets take a look at some of the tips on how we can avoid being manipulated:

- Make an effort to note persuation attempts throughout the day, then make the choice to defeat these attempts. ( TLDR: Get paranoid! )
-Educate yourself by reading classic books on persuation and propaganda. (Then why do I need this book for?)
-Look out for common techniques in your everyday life. (Yeah, anyone can do that, why do I need this book?)
-Be aware that your mind is flawed and have the humility to stay unattached to your beliefs (We'll put a pin in that...)
-Listen to your heart and gut and become conciously aware of what they are trying to tell you. Meditate. (I am aware of it, my friends, I am well aware...)
-Be vary of experts who claim they hold all the answers to complex problems. (Wasn't I supposed to have the humility to stay unattached to my beliefs?)
-Be aware that governments, foreign and domestic, are running propaganda campaigns aimed at you, using multiple media. (Yeah, the russian government is tapping my phone, so they can steal my secret recipe for barbeque ribs.)
-Be skeptical, ask questions, don't be afraid of the term "conspiracy theorist". ("I DON'T LIKE THEM PUTTING CHEMICALS IN THE WATER THAT TURN THE FRIGGIN FROGS GAY!!!")

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone just because the arguments used are the same ones you find when arguing with anti-vaxxers. At best it's just a bunch of things one can find out on your own if you're smart. At worst it's gonna lead you down to Alex Jones-land of conspiracy theories.

I have nothing against asking questions and I have nothing against books which question things.
But I am against things that make people stupid or keep them stupid.
And a book written by people with a clear agenda, who are just trying to manipulate just as bad as those governments or other groups they are talking about, falls in the category of the latter.

[Răzvan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gândire independentă împotriva manipulării „Free Your Mind- The New World Of Manipulation And How To Resist IT”, Laura Dodsworth & Patrick Fagan, Harper Collins, 2024
„Benjamin Franklin, după ce a citit o relatare a procesului lui Socrate, a stabilit să își chestioneze mereu propria judecată și să o respecte pe cea a altor oameni”p.78 Laura Dodsworth & Patrick Fagan, „Free Your Mind- The New World Of Manipulation And How To Resist IT”, Harper Collins, 2024
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Uwen...
Ai impresia că ești bombardat constant cu mesaje care încearcă să-ți influențeze deciziile, credințele, până și gustul pentru cafea? Volumul "Free Your Mind" e o incursiune în culisele manipulării moderne. Dacă vrei, e un ghid de supraviețuire într-o epocă a dezinformării.
Laura Dodsworth și Patrick Fagan, doi experți în psihologie și marketing, dezvăluie mecanismele subtile prin care suntem influențați, de la algoritmii rețelelor sociale la tehnicile de propagandă politică. Nu e o teorie a conspirației, ci o analiză riguroasă, bazată pe studii științifice și exemple concrete.Afli cum funcționează "nudging-ul". Cum emoțiile sunt folosite pentru a te manipula, cum știrile false se răspândesc ca un virus. Dar, mai important, descoperi cum să te protejezi.
Cum filtrezi informația, cum gândești critic, cum iei decizii independente. Manipularea are indiciile ei iar exercițiul acesta te ajută să-ți consolidezi rezistența psihologică, să-ți cultivi spiritul independent. E un apel la auto-apărare intelectuală. Dar și un îndemn la responsabilitate.
„Oamenii sunt vulnerabili la efectele adverse ale conformismului, autorității și fricii, dar sunt și surse de creativitate, putere și individualitate ”p.324 Laura Dodsworth & Patrick Fagan, „Free Your Mind- The New World Of Manipulation And How To Resist IT”, Harper Collins, 2024

[Murshidha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assalamu Alaikum😊, ' If you don't follow your own map, someone else will direct your journey for you' -extracts from the book

Book📗: 'Free your Mind' by Laura Dodsworth and Patrick Fagan

Genre 📸: Non Fiction/ Sales/ Media Studies/ Personality Improvement
______
Overall Ratings 🌟 : 5/ 5
Pages📚: 324
Language : Easy and Elegant
______
🔮 In this era of Social Media, you can find tons of Influencers. How do they seek the phrase 'Influencers'? They typically inject throughts in the listener's mind about someting which in turn manipulates them to follow their words. 20 chapters in 'Free your Mind' covers various aspect like Realiziation, immunisation, overthinking, social media distancing, siding with the right aspects and much more.

🔮 A book like 'Free your mind' is actually a best guide on the current culture. Many times we fall for something, not analysing whether it is required or not. Keeping oneself immune to manipulation is the key. Have you heard of Dunning Kruger effect? There were much more phenomenons explianed in the book which was a new phrase for me😅.

🔮 Mixture of Analysis and Teachings keep the readers relevant to the content. Manipulative images and overstimulating content can damage the attentiveness. Let's compare books and movies. People hook on to movies more these days due to its motion pictures and sounds whereas the population of readers gradually decrease. Reading was considered a mandatory hobby before the invention of motion pictures! Thus what we see and feel manipulate us to give up the healthier option and go with the other. When you feel instances like this, it is high time you should consider reading this book. Do i appear as if I am influencing? Definitely not!😄

[Rahdika K · Rating 3 out of 5]

As indicated by its title, this non-fiction work explores the numerous methods of manipulation, even suggesting that casual social media use entails manipulation. The cover imagery suggests the author's intent for readers to resist conformity.

For those with a background in psychology or psychiatry, this book may serve as a useful review. It covers a wide range of themes, and I appreciated the concise writing and extensive referencing, which aided comprehension. At times, it left me feeling paranoid, even contemplating abandoning my phone for solitude. I also appreciated the inclusion of a three-point summary at the end of most of the chapter, which would prove beneficial for revisiting specific sections.

However, the abundance of references made it feel like a condensed version of each source. Additionally, I found fault with certain aspects, such as the frequent use of Covid and vaccination examples, which seemed to downplay the severity of the pandemic. This portrayal felt insensitive, especially considering personal experiences with unvaccinated family members who succumbed to the virus.

Moreover, a chapter discussing transgender individuals seemed to imply they were manipulated into their identity, which struck me as nonsensical and hurtful. While the tone attempted empathy, it fell short of being respectful.

In conclusion, I will advise approaching this book with caution. While some information is valuable, other parts come across as a political manifesto or espouse the authors' conspiracy theories. This book may serve as an introduction sort for starters.

My ratings: 2.5 stars (rounded up to 3)

Thank you to Miss Putri Fariza and Times Reads for sending me a review copy.

[Shweta · Rating 4 out of 5]

The authors Laura Dodsworth and Patrick Fagan explore the pervasiveness of manipulation and control in our daily lives in "Free Your Mind: Learn how to Recognize and Resist the Daily Attempts to Control and Manipulate Your Mind." Their book offers as an engaging field guide for navigating the information battlefield and revealing the covert strategies employed to sway our opinions and behavior.

Dodsworth and Fagan examine the numerous strategies used by manipulators, including huge tech corporations, politicians, and advertisements. They feature conversations with professionals in mind control, such as monks and magicians, illuminating their dishonest methods.

The significance of identifying these psychological tricks and reclaiming control over our own brains is one of the book's main messages. The writers stress the importance of challenging dominant narratives and those who assert that there are alternatives.

The book promotes critical thinking, giving readers the tools they need to regain control and defend themselves against the relentless assault of deception in contemporary culture.

Dodsworth and Fagan effectively convey their knowledge and opinions on the issue through clear and interesting writing. They strike a mix between analysis and understandable examples so that readers from various backgrounds can find the book engaging.

The book "Free Your Mind" is enlightening and thought-provoking. This book offers insightful information that can assist you in navigating the complexities and difficulties of the contemporary world, whether you are interested in psychology, sociology, or personal development.

[Perrin Hooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book to be conflicting for me. It was full of really interesting, well laid out information that I found very useful and insightful, but there were some drawbacks for me.

As a trans person, I did not like how trans people were represented in this book. Now I'm aware that this is hypocritical for this book, as the entire point is that everyone has opinions and you have your own that you will stick to. I particularly hated the chapter by Patrick about going onto a transgender sub Reddit and experiencing'lovebombing. He clearly stated that a woman is not a man and a man is not a woman. This is not true. Intersex people exist, and there is so much more science behind that than what was in this book. He was surprised by the amount of support he found ON A TRANS SUB REDDIT! Of course you'd be supported, of course people would be kind. it's not brainwashing, it's basic human respect in our community for people who may be questioning. He did not do enough research on this to make a chapter about it and he understood absolutely no nuance of the trans experience.

Which in turn led me to question the rest of this book. If this part could be so poorly researched, which other parts were that I could not point out as I don't have enough knowledge on the topics?

There was more about LGBTQ+ mentions that I could say but honestly can't be bothered.

Overall, I liked the message, and I liked what it taught me, but this detail really bothered me.

[Karen Soole · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have not done any thinking on this subject I thoroughly recommend it. Our world is full of nudges to make us conform to certain behaviours - from walking up the escalator and eating healthily to buying junk food or a new pair of trainers - advertisers and governments all want influence. Some influences are more negative than others - social media in particular. The pandemic manage to communicate such fear that some people have lasting anxiety - fear deliberatively created to manipulate the population to change behaviours. Laura shows how hard it is to resist the relentless messaging which bombards us. Being aware is a good place to start. Her finishing point is particularly interesting - we can't be isolated from influences but work out what your values are - chose. She has begun to look for meaning - submit to something and God is quite a good place to start.

[R7835 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm writing this review less than 3 months after finishing the book and I can barely remember anything about it. That's how good it was. I've given it 2 stars since I managed to finish it, so it must have been readable (although it did take me a month to get through), but I could have probably given it 1 star but I try to keep 1 star reviews for books that I REALLY don't like, and I don't remember really not liking this one. It's just forgettable since the content is a bit of a joke.

So what can I remember? I think one of the authors had to check-in to the Priory during the writing to go cold-turkey to kick their X addiction. And one of the authors may or may not have attended a Michael Barrymore house party in the woods.

I think that's about it. Of course, don't let my review influence you. Give it a read yourself and make up your own mind (see what I did there?)

[ST · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite claiming to help you avoid manipulation, the book has it's own agenda. To illustrate their points on avoiding manipulation the authors use climate change and covid prevention measures as examples (to name a few). Both issues are charged, and suggest a bias towards a certain way of thinking. The book also offers contradictory advice, though it initially exhorts you to think critically and to be cynical; at the end the authors advise us to 'choose our illusion' and claim that everyone is really just brainwashed p 277. They also advise that to assist in determining what your values are and what you stand for, 'you may need to choose your master' p320 and 'we all have to submit to something and some masters are healthier than others'. After all the talk of freeing our minds, it is strange that they come back around to submitting to others instead.

[Cameron Rodgers · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only reason I’m not giving this 1* is because there are *some* nuggets of interesting knowledge presented. Most of this is anecdotal rambling, and is blatantly (perhaps purposely?) written to brute-force persuade you on certain scenarios to match the authors’ opinions on particular issues.

The authors state that they’re trying to persuade you at the beginning of the book - fine, I get it, that’s the point, all media is brainwashing etc etc etc.

But later in the work they discuss the idea of “softening” audiences to an opinion by explicitly telling them what you’re going to do before you do it. So, in essence, they think they’re being clever by employing these methods to the reader of their brainwashing book. Very coy of them. Consider me persuaded of your intellect.

Not worth the read and so can’t recommend it.