It's not exactly pure PR/propaganda, but it's definitely the most consumer-oriented of IEEE's publications. I'd place it somewhere between mags like Popular Mechanics and full-on topic-specific engineering journals. I actually find it quite good in general, though I don't like reading about war tech; I'm sure the U.S. military pushes hard to get stories in it. And most people don't realize that most technology follows a military->big business->everyday consumer path.

Which is why anyone who is not completely narcotized realizes self-driving cars won't be hitting the suburbs until they're thoroughly deployed in the military and internal to big business. So we are being duped in the way that our daydreams are supporting research that we'll be the last ones to enjoy... just look at the internet and cellphones. The military and big business had them for decades before "us".