The term propaganda is often used in discussing cultural phenomena from the Stalinist period in the Soviet Union. Some definitions of propaganda from Western and Soviet sources:

Encyclopedia Britannica:
"...dissemination of information - facts, arguments, rumours, half-truths, or lies - to influence public opinion."
"...an act of advocacy in mass communication, involving the making of deliberately one-sided statements to a mass audience."

Great Soviet Encyclopedia:
"...the dissemination of political, philosophical, scientific, artistic or other views or ideas, with the aim of instilling them in the public consciousness and encouraging mass action."
"...the perception of propaganda is determined by the audience's system of attitudes, as well as by its selective evaluation of the information that has been presented."

Oxford English Dictionary:
"A committee of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church having the care and over-sight of foreign missions, founded in 1622 by Pope Gregory XV."
"Any association, systematic scheme, or concerted movement for the propagation of a particular doctrine or practice."
"The systematic propagation of information or ideas by an interested party, esp. in a tendentious way in order to encourage or instil a particular attitude or response."

Your reading for class comes from Richard Stites' discussion of 1930's movies from the Soviet Union, from his book Russian Popular Culture.

In discussing these enormously popular films from the 30's, Stites doesn't use the word "propaganda." What terms does he use instead, to define these works in general terms?

What issues and questions does Stites think we need to consider in thinking about the role and reception of these films?