It's propaganda in that everything cultural in the US is propaganda. It's not propaganda in that the CIA paid people to write a show shitting on communism. They don't have to do that, it's already part of the cultural milieu. It just bleeds in whether it's intentional or not. Especially when it's a bunch of progressive professionals trying to have a corporate career while aping cultural moments from the 80s.
I'm not very good at communicating what I'm trying to say, but I'm not saying that the show isn't saying political things. It's just that they're saying unexamined political things in order to get to their goal which is 80s nostalgia. I'm not saying it's just an aesthetic so everyone here must agree to like it and that it's good. I don't think the writers are sitting at NF HQ rubbing their hands together over a plot to make communism look bad. It's crass, it's naive, it's ignorant of history. Which is why it's making money for Netflix. Because those things create inoffensive (to most people) entertainment and allows companies to avoid controversy. The goal of making money off the show has more to do with why it's anti-communist than specific ideological goals of the writers or Netflix executives.
"it's just an aesthetic" is an easy way to sugarcoat anything with a propaganda function.
It's propaganda in that everything cultural in the US is propaganda. It's not propaganda in that the CIA paid people to write a show shitting on communism. They don't have to do that, it's already part of the cultural milieu. It just bleeds in whether it's intentional or not. Especially when it's a bunch of progressive professionals trying to have a corporate career while aping cultural moments from the 80s.
I'm not very good at communicating what I'm trying to say, but I'm not saying that the show isn't saying political things. It's just that they're saying unexamined political things in order to get to their goal which is 80s nostalgia. I'm not saying it's just an aesthetic so everyone here must agree to like it and that it's good. I don't think the writers are sitting at NF HQ rubbing their hands together over a plot to make communism look bad. It's crass, it's naive, it's ignorant of history. Which is why it's making money for Netflix. Because those things create inoffensive (to most people) entertainment and allows companies to avoid controversy. The goal of making money off the show has more to do with why it's anti-communist than specific ideological goals of the writers or Netflix executives.