June 18, 2025 • 15 mins
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Molly McPherson (00:02):
Hey there, welcome to the PR Breakdown.
I'm your host, Molly McPherson.
This week, the messaging behindtwo movements dominating our
newsfeed.
In this episode we're divinginto something absolutely
fascinating and, honestly, alittle scary.
We're witnessing two massive PRcampaigns happening
(00:23):
simultaneously in the US rightnow, and they're both straight
out of a playbook written over100 years ago.
On one side, you have Trump'shighly centralized, militarized
immigration enforcementmessaging, complete with
noir-style footage and World WarII-esque imagery.
On the other, a decentralized,grassroots movement called no
(00:44):
Kings that had over 2,000protests happening last weekend.
But here's what got my Gen Xbrain spinning.
When I first heard about noKings, all I could think about
was one of my favorite Saturdaymorning television programs,
schoolhouse Rock.
Do you remember the cartoon,the no Kings cartoon, when they
(01:08):
were singing about the AmericanRevolution?
This is where I wish I couldbust through copyright and play
it instead of doing this to you.
They wanted no more MotherEngland.
They knew the time had come forthem to take command.
It's very.
Do you remember this song?
Can you sing it right off topof your head, like me?
(01:28):
It's very clear.
You're being unfair, king.
No matter what you say, wewon't obey Gonna.
Hold a revolution now, king andwe're gonna run it all away
with no more kings.
Okay, I will stop right thereTo all my fellow Gen Xers who
watch this on Saturday morning.
I'm sorry this is going to bein your head all day, like it
(01:49):
has been in mine all week, butI'm telling you it's the same
type of campaign, because itturns out that connection might
be more strategically brilliantthan anyone realizes.
In this episode, let's explorewhy, using the framework of a
one Edward Bernays, theso-called father of public
(02:09):
relations, who literally wrotethe book on propaganda.
So let's break it down.
Before we dive into thecampaigns, I need to give you
the lens that I'm going to useto analyze everything, and that
lens comes from a man namedEdward Bernays.
Now, if you're like me and youtook the APR test through PRSA,
the Public Relations Society ofAmerica, I'm guessing you had
(02:32):
this question on the test.
It's all about Edward Bernays.
So I have the playbook in frontof me, crystallizing Public
Opinion.
I refer to it quite often in mywork.
It's copyrighted in 1923, thisepisode over a hundred years
later.
But what he wrote could sendchills down your spine if you
(02:55):
cared about PR in this way.
He said, and I quote those whomanipulate public opinion
constitute an invisiblegovernment, which is the true
(03:21):
from the government thatmanipulates public opinion.
Now here's what's important tounderstand Public relations is
human behavior.
It's how we think, how we react, how we message things for
public consumption.
And that public could be anyoneyour employees, your customers,
your voters, your family, yourcommunity.
We all work in messaging,whether we realize it or not.
(03:42):
Every single day, we'recrafting messages for different
audiences.
The difference is most of usaren't trying to manipulate
public opinion on a massivescale, but some people are, and
they're using Bernays' playbookto do it, whether they know it
or not.
Bernays talked about how publicopinion is formed through what
he called the group and herdmechanism.
(04:02):
He understood that people don'tmake decisions in isolation.
They make decisions based onwhat they think their group
believes, what they think isnormal, what they think is
expected.
Does that sound familiar?
Because that's exactly whatwe're seeing play out right now
in these two campaigns.
Let's start with the Trumpcampaign, because this is where
(04:24):
Brunet's invisible governmentconcept really comes into focus.
First, we need to understandsomething crucial A lot of what
we're seeing is theater, puretheater.
Trump is using his authority tomake moves, knowing full well
that many of these moves will bechallenged in courts, but he
doesn't care about the legaloutcomes.
He cares about the imagery, themessaging, the theater of it.
(04:46):
All that plays into his ego.
And here's the thing Trump hasalways been our television
president.
The same reason his show theApprentice, was successful is
the same reason he's able towield power so effectively
nowadays.
He understands television,which means he understands
social media with the videocomponent.
He understands spectacle.
(05:08):
He understands how to createcompelling imagery that gets
people emotionally invested.
So let's break down his currentcampaign using Bernays'
framework.
Target audience number one, hisbase, but also moderate
Americans who want immigrationpolicy changes.
And here's the uncomfortabletruth that's a lot of people.
(05:28):
This isn't just Republicanswe're talking about.
There are moderates and evenDemocrats who genuinely want an
immigration policy that'sactually enforced.
The message we're delivering onour promises.
We're bringing order andstrength.
The emotional appeal patriotism, strength and this is key fear
(05:49):
of invasion.
Now here's where it gets reallystrategic.
The imagery we're seeing isvery specific.
You're going to see Mexicanflags in the footage, not
because they're necessarilydominant in the actual protest,
because that's the imagery thatsupports the invasion narrative.
You're going to see smoke, teargas, masks, everything shot in
(06:10):
that noir style black and whitedramatic, scary armed soldiers,
handcuffs imagery thatdeliberately evokes World War II
deportation scenes.
They're not necessarily puttingthis out on newscasts, but
they're putting it out in theircontent on their socials.
Let me give you the numbers.
This is where theater andreality diverge.
(06:31):
Trump's administration claims200,000 deportations since the
inauguration.
Sounds impressive, right, butonly 10,000 of those were
voluntary self-deportations.
And there are still 1.4 millionpeople with final deportation
orders who remain in the country.
The visuals suggestoverwhelming success, but the
numbers don't back it up.
(06:52):
That's the campaign, folks.
That's the theater.
But here's the thing.
Is it working?
That's the question we have toask, because if people believe
the theater more than thereality, then the theater
becomes the reality.
Now let's look at thecounter-narrative, the no Kings
(07:14):
movement.
With no more kings, no more,okay, no more singing Molly, I
promise and I have to start withthis Whoever came up with the
no Kings as the slogan is amessaging genius, because it
does exactly what good PR shoulddo it connects to something
people already know and feelemotionally connected to.
(07:35):
I may be the only person whohears no Kings from Schoolhouse
Rocks, and if you're stillsinging it in your head.
I'm sorry, but I honestly don'tthink that's where it comes
from.
The movement started on Reddit,which is where a lot of these
grassroots movements begin now.
It was created by someone whofeels millennial, elder,
(07:58):
millennial.
He describes himself as anengineer by day, with a degree
in marketing and a fascinationwith virality.
Notice that Marketingbackground fascination with
social media, virality.
This person understands howmessages spread.
The numbers are impressive.
February 5th, their firstprotest had 72,000 participants.
(08:19):
April 5th, they claimed 5.2million participants, and now so
, at the time of recording, itwill be tomorrow's protest, on
Saturday, june 14th.
They have over 2,000 plannedevents nationwide 2,000.
That's not a protest, that's amovement.
(08:43):
But here's what makes thisdifferent from other recent
movements it's not just onedemographic, it's not just women
with pink hats, it's not justone racial group.
It's everyone coming togetherunder one umbrella and,
strategically, they're beingvery smart about the messaging.
They're using constitutionallanguage, rule of law, democracy
(09:04):
.
They're timing it with Flag Day.
They are reclaiming the flag.
They're making a big push forit to be peaceful protests, not
riots, because here's what theyunderstand Trump wants people to
protest in Washington DC.
He wants the footage.
He wants to be able to say lookat these protesters attacking
(09:26):
the very military that'sprotecting you.
But the no Kings movement isdoing something brilliant
they're telling people not to goto DC.
Don't give them what he wants.
Don't feed the beast.
In fact, last Friday on my gotunder his skin by attacking the
(10:06):
ego.
So it's exactly what they'redoing again to Trump and,
frankly, it's genius.
So what are we really watchinghere?
We're witnessing classic PR wartactics on both sides and
they're using Edward Bernays'playbook again.
Whether they realize it or not,trump is deploying what Bernays
would call an quote invasionnarrative Save the country from
(10:27):
dangerous outsiders.
The imagery is carefullycurated Mexican flags waving
from the California protests,palestinian flags, anyone who
can be framed as others, orthreatening no King's is using
what Bernays would recognize asrevolutionary symbolism.
But they're being smart aboutit.
(10:48):
Instead of resistance andsaying this is the resistance
which sounds reactive and angry,they're using no Kings, which
sounds patriotic andfoundational.
One campaign is about order andstrength and military power.
The other is about freedom anddemocracy and constitutional
values.
But here's the crucialdifference Trump's campaign is
(11:11):
centralized.
Everything flows through himand his administration.
The no Kings movement isdecentralized no single leader,
no single point of failure, andhistorically, decentralized
movements are much harder tostop.
The framing couldn't be moredifferent.
Trump's campaign uses fear,invasion, chaos, the need for
(11:34):
strength.
No King's uses hopeconstitutional values, democracy
, the promise of America.
We've seen this before Hopeelected Obama, fear elected
Trump the first time.
The question is, which emotionis stronger now?
So what can you do with thisinformation?
(11:54):
How do you avoid getting sweptup in the manipulation?
First, recognize the techniques.
When you see that dramaticfootage of ICE raids, when you
see social media posts from DHS,from ICE, ask yourself what am
I not seeing?
What's the full context?
What emotion is this designedto trigger in me?
(12:16):
When you see thoserevolutionary symbols and
patriotic language, ask the samequestion what's the real goal
here?
What action am I being asked totake?
Second, look at the numbers, notjust the imagery.
The most compelling footagedoesn't always represent full
reality.
Third, understand that bothsides are trying to get you
(12:36):
emotionally invested.
That's not necessarily bad.
Emotions drive action andsometimes action is necessary.
But make sure you're choosingyour emotional investment
consciously, not just reactingto whatever imagery is put in
front of you.
And finally, remember that in ademocracy, your attention is
power.
Where you focus your attention,what you share, what you talk
(12:57):
about.
That's how you vote everysingle day, not just in
elections.
Both of these campaigns wantyour attention, both want your
emotional energy.
Both want you to feel like youhave to choose a side.
Maybe the real power is inunderstanding the game being
played and choosing consciouslyhow or if you want to
(13:18):
participate.
The success of these campaignswon't be measured by the loudest
voices or the most dramaticfootage.
It will be measured by numbershow many people show up, how
many stay home, how many takeaction.
But regardless of which sideyou're on, or if you're not on
either side, the real victory isin understanding how public
opinion is being shaped.
(13:38):
Once you see these PR strategiesat work, you can't unsee them
Now.
This analysis, as I mentionedearlier, came from one of my
live chats with my Substackcommunity.
If you enjoyed this format, Ihost these conversations
regularly on both Substack andYouTube.
I love to break down the PRstrategies that I spot as
(13:59):
current events unfold.
You can find everything atprbreakdownmedia, that is a
website that's based on Substack, or you can follow me on
Substack at Molly McPherson.
I've got exciting conversationscoming up, including one with
Dr Abby Medcalf and another withmedia training experts Warren
(14:20):
Weeks and John Peranek.
Both of them are my favoritemedia guys, both from Toronto.
Plus, I'm launching a new toolit is a beta launch for my
Substack members that appliesthese PR frameworks to real
world messaging.
If you want to be a part ofthat beta launch, then head on
over to my Substack, become amember and then you will get all
(14:42):
the information you need.
Become a member and then youwill get all the information you
need.
Thanks for joining me this weekinto our deep dive into the
messaging wars.
As I mentioned again, I'mrecording this the day prior to
the no Kings protests andbirthday celebration for the
army and President Trump.
So remember this in a worldfull of spin, the truth is in
(15:06):
understanding how the spin works.
Until next time, let's all keepbreaking it down.
And no more kings, no morekings, no more kings.
Okay, I'll stop.
Hey there, welcome to the PR Breakdown.
I'm your host, Molly McPherson.
This week, the messaging behindtwo movements dominating our
newsfeed.
In this episode we're divinginto something absolutely
fascinating and, honestly, alittle scary.
We're witnessing two massive PRcampaigns happening
(00:23):
simultaneously in the US rightnow, and they're both straight
out of a playbook written over100 years ago.
On one side, you have Trump'shighly centralized, militarized
immigration enforcementmessaging, complete with
noir-style footage and World WarII-esque imagery.
On the other, a decentralized,grassroots movement called no
(00:44):
Kings that had over 2,000protests happening last weekend.
But here's what got my Gen Xbrain spinning.
When I first heard about noKings, all I could think about
was one of my favorite Saturdaymorning television programs,
schoolhouse Rock.
Do you remember the cartoon,the no Kings cartoon, when they
(01:08):
were singing about the AmericanRevolution?
This is where I wish I couldbust through copyright and play
it instead of doing this to you.
They wanted no more MotherEngland.
They knew the time had come forthem to take command.
It's very.
Do you remember this song?
Can you sing it right off topof your head, like me?
(01:28):
It's very clear.
You're being unfair, king.
No matter what you say, wewon't obey Gonna.
Hold a revolution now, king andwe're gonna run it all away
with no more kings.
Okay, I will stop right thereTo all my fellow Gen Xers who
watch this on Saturday morning.
I'm sorry this is going to bein your head all day, like it
(01:49):
has been in mine all week, butI'm telling you it's the same
type of campaign, because itturns out that connection might
be more strategically brilliantthan anyone realizes.
In this episode, let's explorewhy, using the framework of a
one Edward Bernays, theso-called father of public
(02:09):
relations, who literally wrotethe book on propaganda.
So let's break it down.
Before we dive into thecampaigns, I need to give you
the lens that I'm going to useto analyze everything, and that
lens comes from a man namedEdward Bernays.
Now, if you're like me and youtook the APR test through PRSA,
the Public Relations Society ofAmerica, I'm guessing you had
(02:32):
this question on the test.
It's all about Edward Bernays.
So I have the playbook in frontof me, crystallizing Public
Opinion.
I refer to it quite often in mywork.
It's copyrighted in 1923, thisepisode over a hundred years
later.
But what he wrote could sendchills down your spine if you
(02:55):
cared about PR in this way.
He said, and I quote those whomanipulate public opinion
constitute an invisiblegovernment, which is the true
(03:21):
from the government thatmanipulates public opinion.
Now here's what's important tounderstand Public relations is
human behavior.
It's how we think, how we react, how we message things for
public consumption.
And that public could be anyoneyour employees, your customers,
your voters, your family, yourcommunity.
We all work in messaging,whether we realize it or not.
(03:42):
Every single day, we'recrafting messages for different
audiences.
The difference is most of usaren't trying to manipulate
public opinion on a massivescale, but some people are, and
they're using Bernays' playbookto do it, whether they know it
or not.
Bernays talked about how publicopinion is formed through what
he called the group and herdmechanism.
(04:02):
He understood that people don'tmake decisions in isolation.
They make decisions based onwhat they think their group
believes, what they think isnormal, what they think is
expected.
Does that sound familiar?
Because that's exactly whatwe're seeing play out right now
in these two campaigns.
Let's start with the Trumpcampaign, because this is where
(04:24):
Brunet's invisible governmentconcept really comes into focus.
First, we need to understandsomething crucial A lot of what
we're seeing is theater, puretheater.
Trump is using his authority tomake moves, knowing full well
that many of these moves will bechallenged in courts, but he
doesn't care about the legaloutcomes.
He cares about the imagery, themessaging, the theater of it.
(04:46):
All that plays into his ego.
And here's the thing Trump hasalways been our television
president.
The same reason his show theApprentice, was successful is
the same reason he's able towield power so effectively
nowadays.
He understands television,which means he understands
social media with the videocomponent.
He understands spectacle.
(05:08):
He understands how to createcompelling imagery that gets
people emotionally invested.
So let's break down his currentcampaign using Bernays'
framework.
Target audience number one, hisbase, but also moderate
Americans who want immigrationpolicy changes.
And here's the uncomfortabletruth that's a lot of people.
(05:28):
This isn't just Republicanswe're talking about.
There are moderates and evenDemocrats who genuinely want an
immigration policy that'sactually enforced.
The message we're delivering onour promises.
We're bringing order andstrength.
The emotional appeal patriotism, strength and this is key fear
(05:49):
of invasion.
Now here's where it gets reallystrategic.
The imagery we're seeing isvery specific.
You're going to see Mexicanflags in the footage, not
because they're necessarilydominant in the actual protest,
because that's the imagery thatsupports the invasion narrative.
You're going to see smoke, teargas, masks, everything shot in
(06:10):
that noir style black and whitedramatic, scary armed soldiers,
handcuffs imagery thatdeliberately evokes World War II
deportation scenes.
They're not necessarily puttingthis out on newscasts, but
they're putting it out in theircontent on their socials.
Let me give you the numbers.
This is where theater andreality diverge.
(06:31):
Trump's administration claims200,000 deportations since the
inauguration.
Sounds impressive, right, butonly 10,000 of those were
voluntary self-deportations.
And there are still 1.4 millionpeople with final deportation
orders who remain in the country.
The visuals suggestoverwhelming success, but the
numbers don't back it up.
(06:52):
That's the campaign, folks.
That's the theater.
But here's the thing.
Is it working?
That's the question we have toask, because if people believe
the theater more than thereality, then the theater
becomes the reality.
Now let's look at thecounter-narrative, the no Kings
(07:14):
movement.
With no more kings, no more,okay, no more singing Molly, I
promise and I have to start withthis Whoever came up with the
no Kings as the slogan is amessaging genius, because it
does exactly what good PR shoulddo it connects to something
people already know and feelemotionally connected to.
(07:35):
I may be the only person whohears no Kings from Schoolhouse
Rocks, and if you're stillsinging it in your head.
I'm sorry, but I honestly don'tthink that's where it comes
from.
The movement started on Reddit,which is where a lot of these
grassroots movements begin now.
It was created by someone whofeels millennial, elder,
(07:58):
millennial.
He describes himself as anengineer by day, with a degree
in marketing and a fascinationwith virality.
Notice that Marketingbackground fascination with
social media, virality.
This person understands howmessages spread.
The numbers are impressive.
February 5th, their firstprotest had 72,000 participants.
(08:19):
April 5th, they claimed 5.2million participants, and now so
, at the time of recording, itwill be tomorrow's protest, on
Saturday, june 14th.
They have over 2,000 plannedevents nationwide 2,000.
That's not a protest, that's amovement.
(08:43):
But here's what makes thisdifferent from other recent
movements it's not just onedemographic, it's not just women
with pink hats, it's not justone racial group.
It's everyone coming togetherunder one umbrella and,
strategically, they're beingvery smart about the messaging.
They're using constitutionallanguage, rule of law, democracy
(09:04):
.
They're timing it with Flag Day.
They are reclaiming the flag.
They're making a big push forit to be peaceful protests, not
riots, because here's what theyunderstand Trump wants people to
protest in Washington DC.
He wants the footage.
He wants to be able to say lookat these protesters attacking
(09:26):
the very military that'sprotecting you.
But the no Kings movement isdoing something brilliant
they're telling people not to goto DC.
Don't give them what he wants.
Don't feed the beast.
In fact, last Friday on my gotunder his skin by attacking the
(10:06):
ego.
So it's exactly what they'redoing again to Trump and,
frankly, it's genius.
So what are we really watchinghere?
We're witnessing classic PR wartactics on both sides and
they're using Edward Bernays'playbook again.
Whether they realize it or not,trump is deploying what Bernays
would call an quote invasionnarrative Save the country from
(10:27):
dangerous outsiders.
The imagery is carefullycurated Mexican flags waving
from the California protests,palestinian flags, anyone who
can be framed as others, orthreatening no King's is using
what Bernays would recognize asrevolutionary symbolism.
But they're being smart aboutit.
(10:48):
Instead of resistance andsaying this is the resistance
which sounds reactive and angry,they're using no Kings, which
sounds patriotic andfoundational.
One campaign is about order andstrength and military power.
The other is about freedom anddemocracy and constitutional
values.
But here's the crucialdifference Trump's campaign is
(11:11):
centralized.
Everything flows through himand his administration.
The no Kings movement isdecentralized no single leader,
no single point of failure, andhistorically, decentralized
movements are much harder tostop.
The framing couldn't be moredifferent.
Trump's campaign uses fear,invasion, chaos, the need for
(11:34):
strength.
No King's uses hopeconstitutional values, democracy
, the promise of America.
We've seen this before Hopeelected Obama, fear elected
Trump the first time.
The question is, which emotionis stronger now?
So what can you do with thisinformation?
(11:54):
How do you avoid getting sweptup in the manipulation?
First, recognize the techniques.
When you see that dramaticfootage of ICE raids, when you
see social media posts from DHS,from ICE, ask yourself what am
I not seeing?
What's the full context?
What emotion is this designedto trigger in me?
(12:16):
When you see thoserevolutionary symbols and
patriotic language, ask the samequestion what's the real goal
here?
What action am I being asked totake?
Second, look at the numbers, notjust the imagery.
The most compelling footagedoesn't always represent full
reality.
Third, understand that bothsides are trying to get you
(12:36):
emotionally invested.
That's not necessarily bad.
Emotions drive action andsometimes action is necessary.
But make sure you're choosingyour emotional investment
consciously, not just reactingto whatever imagery is put in
front of you.
And finally, remember that in ademocracy, your attention is
power.
Where you focus your attention,what you share, what you talk
(12:57):
about.
That's how you vote everysingle day, not just in
elections.
Both of these campaigns wantyour attention, both want your
emotional energy.
Both want you to feel like youhave to choose a side.
Maybe the real power is inunderstanding the game being
played and choosing consciouslyhow or if you want to
(13:18):
participate.
The success of these campaignswon't be measured by the loudest
voices or the most dramaticfootage.
It will be measured by numbershow many people show up, how
many stay home, how many takeaction.
But regardless of which sideyou're on, or if you're not on
either side, the real victory isin understanding how public
opinion is being shaped.
(13:38):
Once you see these PR strategiesat work, you can't unsee them
Now.
This analysis, as I mentionedearlier, came from one of my
live chats with my Substackcommunity.
If you enjoyed this format, Ihost these conversations
regularly on both Substack andYouTube.
I love to break down the PRstrategies that I spot as
(13:59):
current events unfold.
You can find everything atprbreakdownmedia, that is a
website that's based on Substack, or you can follow me on
Substack at Molly McPherson.
I've got exciting conversationscoming up, including one with
Dr Abby Medcalf and another withmedia training experts Warren
(14:20):
Weeks and John Peranek.
Both of them are my favoritemedia guys, both from Toronto.
Plus, I'm launching a new toolit is a beta launch for my
Substack members that appliesthese PR frameworks to real
world messaging.
If you want to be a part ofthat beta launch, then head on
over to my Substack, become amember and then you will get all
(14:42):
the information you need.
Become a member and then youwill get all the information you
need.
Thanks for joining me this weekinto our deep dive into the
messaging wars.
As I mentioned again, I'mrecording this the day prior to
the no Kings protests andbirthday celebration for the
army and President Trump.
So remember this in a worldfull of spin, the truth is in
(15:06):
understanding how the spin works.
Until next time, let's all keepbreaking it down.
And no more kings, no morekings, no more kings.
Okay, I'll stop.
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