The Hollywood-Hitler-Spielberg Connection

[davemarc]

hg wrote that Spielberg, a Hollywood film director, adopted and refined the
propaganda tricks of Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda minister.  I suggested
that hg be "more careful about distinguishing between propagandizing a la
Goebbels and directing/producing a la Spielberg."  

Now hg says that "their cinematic techniques and what I called 'propaganda
tricks' are most certainly the same (read:  part of the same bag of tricks)"
and asks "Are you seriously implying some kind of fundamental difference
between 'propagandizing' and 'directing/producing' as used above?"

It should be clear to those of us who are familiar with English that
"propagandizing" and "directing/producing" are not synonymous terms,
particularly when applied to the individuals under consideration.  Spielberg
was not the Nazi propaganda minister, and Goebbels is not the Hollywood film
director.  

It is possible that editing and storytelling techniques used by Nazi
filmmakers under Goebbels' thumb were also used by Spielberg?  It's almost
inevitable--in the same sense that hg and I, as writers of English, may
sometimes employ similar words, grammatical constructions, and concepts.
Did Spielberg adopt and refine Goebbels' propaganda tricks--that is, take
propaganda tricks from Goebbels himself and refine them?  I strongly doubt
it, and continue to suggest that anyone making that case proceed with
caution (i.e. specific examples).

davemarc