The Russian-Eurasian Student Organization is hosting a lecture by Professor Katherine Hill (Reischl; former prof. of Russian at Princeton and Stanford; Deloitte) at 5:30 p.m., Monday, April 14, at Gearhart 102. Titled The Color of Propaganda, From the Cold War to Russia Today, the lecture explores the power words in shaping opinion and inciting action. Combine those strong words with stirring images, and we have the embodied power of propaganda. The lecture will dive into a past history of "soft propaganda" in the latter half of the 20th century to better understand how today's propaganda war between Russia, Ukraine and the US grabs and holds hearts and minds. With a focus on periodicals, including Amerika and Soviet Life magazines, it will connect the printed page of yesteryear to the rapidly shifting landscape of social media today.

In 2018, Hill published the book Photographic Memory: Cameras in the Hands of Russian Authors, published by Cornell University Press. She is also a creator of the Digital Humanities project on Playing Soviet on Soviet children's books. 

Besides the lecture, Hill is also giving a workshop from noon-1 p.m. Monday, April 14, in J.B. Hunt 207. The workshop is titled Visual Literacy in the Age of AI and will provide a short practicum in looking at image manipulation within a longer history of image making. It will also focus on how visual studies can contextualize the rise of AI as a technology and discuss ways that this history, and strong visual analysis, can be used in classrooms today.

These events will offer students a unique opportunity to learn from an expert in Slavic studies. Don't miss out on this chance to expand your knowledge and gain new insights into the world of propaganda and photography in Russia.

RVSP to the lecture here.

RVSP to the workshop here.

Visit the Russian-Eurasian Student Organization for more information about the group.

Interested in reading Russian literature? Learn more about the Russian studies minor. Learn more about the courses.

This event is co-sponsored by the Russian-Eurasian Student Organization; International and Global Studies Program; the Department of Political Science; the Department of World Languages, Literatures and Cultures; and the Department of English.