Is the quality of a story separable from the socio-political and linguistic milieu it is born in?

This question is inspired by a comment made by a user on the “good film/TV SF” thread.

They called Battlestar Galactica “politically reactionary and racist”.

I consider myself to be neither, yet I still find it compelling viewing , at least up until S3, where the spiritual/religious elements of the series become much more prominent, which undermines the drama, in my opinion.

The comment got me thinking – is the Platonic view of drama (more generally art) as mimesis really valid? Does my enjoying a well-told story necessitate that I subscribe to the political analysis that others make of a piece of art?

I feel that certain political perspectives necessitate censorship – Marxism is among them, although there are others – because there is an assumption that items which accrue cultural capital, by whatever means, determine, or at least greatly influence the thinking of those who ‘consume’ the items.

My instinct is to strongly reject this assertion, but it got me thinking.

Can art or story-telling (I don’t wish to unnecessarily conflate the two) have such an impact that it should be controlled? Does art really serve to propagate political opinions? How effective is propaganda and advertising anyway?

A bit vague, I know, but I’m really interested in your responses.