Influencing the Masses by Klaus Brenner

Influencing the Masses by Klaus Brenner explores how advertising, political messages and social media shape what people notice, believe and share. It traces the history of mass persuasion from Gustave Le Bon’s writing on crowds and Edward Bernays’s public relations campaigns to the recommendation systems that decide what appears in our feeds.

What Influencing the Masses covers

Brenner connects the history of propaganda with the choices readers make every day. The book looks at how stories become news, why familiar messages can feel more convincing, and how group pressure can make it difficult to question what everyone else seems to believe.

• Crowd psychology: How people respond to ideas and emotions in groups.
• Propaganda and advertising: How political campaigns and advertisers frame messages to shape public opinion.
• News and social media: How media filters and recommendation systems influence which stories reach an audience.
• Everyday judgment: What to look for when someone uses pressure or repetition to persuade you.

Who should read it?

Influencing the Masses is for readers interested in social psychology, media literacy or the history of public relations. It gives you a way to ask better questions about the messages you encounter, whether you are reading a headline, watching a campaign ad or deciding what to share.

Paperback details

• Author: Klaus Brenner
• Subtitle: The Psychological Techniques a Handful of People Use to Steer Billions of Minds
• Publisher: Aternal
• Format: English paperback, 206 pages
• Publication date: 20 August 2026
• ISBN-13: 9791257741433