Eleanor M. Owens
“The easiest way to inject a propaganda idea into most people’s minds is to let it go through the medium of an entertainment picture.” – OWI Head Elmer Davis
In similar powerful fashion, the entertainment industry has a history of being directly tied to psychological and propaganda operations, which can be considered its own form of magic. As there is a history of occultists also working in the entertainment industry (eg through Crowley/Thelema followers like Kenneth Anger), it’s fascinating to note how the wand and the screen can enchant in similar ways.
There is real-world evidence that Hollywood and the entertainment industry willingly participates in psyops and subliminal messaging with intelligence and government agencies. As I want to begin exploring the entertainment industry’s role within our imperial collapse (you’ll note they are in the Epstein files too and reference them from time to time, demonstrating full awareness), but to do this I need to first explain the real-world evidence that governments can and have tampered with our entertainment to encourage certain ideas and ideologies.
For those who don’t know, the history includes:
WW2: Direct Government Propaganda Partnership via the Office of War Information (OWI)
In 1942, President Roosevelt created the OWI and its “Bureau of Motion Pictures” to coordinate wartime messaging. The BMP maintained the Hollywood office, and reviewed approximately 1,652 scripts between 1942-1945. They suggested changes, made revisions, or rejected films that didn’t align with war aims, and Hollywood studios cooperated voluntarily, supporting the OWI to produce documentaries like Frank Capra’s “Why We Fight” series and shorts like the “Projections of America.” OWI head Elmer Davis famously said: “the easiest way to inject a propaganda idea into most people’s minds is to let it go through the medium of an entertainment picture when they do not realize they’re being propagandized.”
Pre-Pearl Harbour, isolationist U.S senators probed Hollywood for “warmongering propaganda” as they noticed overt Hollywood alignment with government messaging. The OSS (CIA’s predecessor) also recruited Hollywood talent, meaning that certain directors, writers, producers, and even actors at the time were CIA assets if not actual agents. Director John Ford was one of the most prominent recruits by OSS Director Wild Bill Donovan, as was Disney artist Bob Broughton, who was famous for his work on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, and the Black Hole, a 1979 film that was at the time the most expensive film ever produced by Disney.
As you’ll perhaps recall, Disney remains untrustworthy to this day. The Epstein files release indicated that the Disney cruise line makes stops at Epstein’s pedo island.
Cold War: Direct CIA Funding and Script Alteration to 1954’s Animal Farm Adaptation
After George Orwell’s death, CIA officers secretly bought the film rights for his allegorical novella Animal Farm. They then worked behind the scenes as a silent partner for John Halas and Joy Batchelor’s 1954 film adaptation.
CIA operatives thus altered the script and ending. As many of you perhaps remember from your required reading in elementary school, Animal Farm is a beast fable about communism, but it is not purely “anti-communist.” It rather argues that communism and capitalism are ideologies with equal capability of oppression. With CIA involvement however, the anti-capitalist themes were downplayed. The finale was changed so that the animals overthrow the communist pigs, which does not happen in the book. The novella rather portrays a bleaker ending that draws comparisons between the communists and capitalists, equally condemning them for allowing the regular animals to suffer. Halas and Batchelor’s film was distributed worldwide, with free prints sent to US schools and libraries via the US Information Agency.
Other instances of CIA meddling in film since the 50s have been noted with for instance lifelong Paramount executive Luigi Luraschi. Evidence suggests he was likely a CIA asset and worked until 1994. He worked closely with the Psychological Strategy Board and his letters suggest that he worked to promote Red Scare propaganda and portray America as a morally superior, racially harmonious place.
1990s: CIA and Pentagon “Entertainment Liaison” Offices – Influence via Access
The CIA established an official Entertainment Industry Liaison in the mid 1990s, starting with Chase Brandon in 1996. Actor/director Ben Affleck, who directed 2012’s Argo (a film in itself about the CIA), admitted that “probably Hollywood is full of CIA agents… we just don’t know it.” The CIA themselves have confirmed this, acknowledging that they have provided script notes, expert meetings, locations, and classified information for various films and television including The Recruit (Brandon co-wrote the original treatment), Argo, Zero Dark Thirty, The Sum of All Fears, Salt, Homeland, and 24. The CIA’s position is that their role here is largely advisory.
The Pentagon/DoD (now DoW) is even more well known for providing evidence that they meddle in our entertainment. They offer jets, ships, bases, troops, and equipment worth millions in exchange for script approvals and changes. Thousands of productions are affected, and films about the American military typically have negative elements removed or softened. Affected films include but are not limited to Top Gun, Iron Man, Transformers, and Black Hawk Down.
Contemporary Situation
As of early 2026, the CIA’s current Entertainment Industry Liaison operates within the Office of Public Affairs (OPA), which handles all media, public relations, communications, press, and entertainment inquiries. There is no longer one person publicly spotlighted in the same way as Chase Brandon (1996-2007) or Paul Barry (late 2000s-early 2010s). Names like Chris White appear in public records and declassified FOIA documents, but no one liaison is named. Per the 2019 CIA FOIA release however (document C06810310), the CIA explicitly states: “The Agency has often had an experienced officer (GS-14 or GS-15) serve in OPA as the Entertainment Industry Liaison officer.” GS-14 and GS-15 officers refer to senior, 6-figure making career officers, so these are not junior officials.
The broader OPA is currently led by Director Liz Lyons. She was appointed by then-CIA Director John Ratcliffe and oversees current functions.
There is evidence the Pentagon/DoW is still involved in films. They for instance provided F/A-18 jets, carriers, pilots, and bases for Top Gun’s sequel Top Gun: Maverick (2022) in exchange for script revisions and weaving in “key talking points.” FOIA documents via Tom Secker demonstrate meetings from 2012-2018 with Production Assistance Agreements giving the DoW review rights, meaning the practice is still relatively recent.
You will also note that certain celebrities get occasionally called upon when an argument of authority is needed to promote or endorse a certain policy. Here for example is actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt advocating for the repeal of Section 230, which is an American law that provides immunity to online platforms from being held liable for content created by their users. It allows these platforms to moderate content without being treated as the publisher of that content, which has been crucial for the development of the internet and freedom of information. The Zionist Anti-Defamation League would like it to be repealed so that people will stop telling everyone about how Israel is evil. Watch Gordon-Levitt passionately argue about how censorship is deeply needed because of “extremism,” “division,” and “conspiracy theories” online. Nice performance, Joe!
Those in media studies describe this technique in various ways. In PR it’s called a “Third Party Technique” — an attempt to make a propaganda message look like it is coming from a neutral, independent source. Noam Chomsky (who, yes is in the Epstein files too), wrote in Manufacturing Consent that powerful people sometimes call on and saturate the airwaves with “experts” who all happen to agree on the same policy. Because repetition is a brainwashing technique, this makes the policy seem like it’s the only reasonable one that exists, which is how populations get socialized into supporting policies they may not have otherwise. You can spot these by paying attention to whether a person’s argument is actually better or whether it only seems like a better argument because that person has a PhD or something. Don’t get fooled by language that seems intelligent but is just throwing “intelligent words” around. Look at the argument. A PhD or celebrity status does not negate one’s ability to participate within corruption.
*Eleanor M Owens Siyonizm ve küreselcilik karşıtı Kanadalı bir bülten yazarıdır.
Source: What Are We Literally Doing? With Eleanor M Newsletter
Source: https://eleanormowens.substack.com/p/hollywood-and-the-enchantment-of
