Nazi propaganda

1
How successful was Nazi Propaganda?
2
Doctor Joseph Göbbels
Göbbels joined the Nazi Party in 1925 and became
the partys expert on propaganda. He invented the
Hitler Myth by publishing pamphlets and
organising demonstrations and election
campaigns. In 1933, Göbbels was appointed
Minister of Propaganda and Popular Enlightenment.
His first task was to take control of all
newspapers, films, radio stations and the
arts. Göbbels was a master of his art, and
exploited every opportunity to its full
potential, even if he hadnt initially created
the opportunity. Göbbels was violently
anti-Semitic and was the author of the Nuremburg
Laws of 1935, as well as being the organiser of
Kristallnächt. He stayed with Hitler to the end,
and witnessed Hitlers suicide in his bunker
where he then committed suicide with his wife.
3
What is Propaganda?
Propaganda is the systematic spreading of
information, or misinformation. The aim is to
instil particular attitudes in people, to get
them to think and believe what you want them to.
For Göbbels this involved getting the Germans to
believe in Nazi ideas and be loyal to Hitler. It
has been widely used by governments to distort
the facts and maintain popularity and in some
cases, morale. Propaganda comes in many forms,
perhaps the most subtle, yet effective is in the
form of posters.
What do you think are the essential features of
an effective propaganda campaign? Explain your
ideas fully.
4
Propaganda Media
Use the information below to explain how Göbbels
manipulated the media for propaganda. For each
method explain how it helped spread Nazism. What
do you think happened if people didnt comply?
Newspapers only printed favourable stories.
Editors had to go to Göbbels every morning to be
told what to print. Göbbels ran the radio
stations. He produced cheap radio sets - the VE
radio cost 76 marks, the DKE cost only 35 marks (
a weeks wages). This meant that everyone could
hear Hitlers speeches. Loudspeaker pillars were
built in the streets to that people could hear
announcements at all times All cafes had to have
their radios turned on for important
programmes. Mass rallies were the most
spectacular medium. These sometimes lasted a
whole week.
5
Mass Rallies
These were always organised to perfection, and
were in large areas which could accommodate
thousands of people. As well as speeches by
Hitler, they usually included gymnastic displays,
army parades, choirs and brass bands and were
finished off with an air force display and
fireworks. They were often filmed for later use.
Young, blonde women were always pulled to the
front of the crowd to emphasise the idea of the
Aryan nation and Hitler was often filmed with
young children. Hanne-Lore Lugering and Ilse
Woile watched an old film of the May Day
celebrations in which theyd participated Blond
e, blue-eyed, tall people were much admired. They
were the flag carriersIlse carried the flag
because she was pretty, tall and blonde.
Hanne-Lore Lugering There I am. Im carrying the
flag. I was very proudMy main thought was that
Id be in the film Ilse Woile
6
Censorship
Censorship means to ban information or
entertainment which the government thinks is
harmful. Dictatorship and censorship tend to go
hand in hand. In order to maintain the status
of Nazism, censorship was needed to stop the
spread of other ideas. A wide range of things
were censored, including a Tarzan and Jane film
because they were both scantily dressed, and Jazz
music as its origins were from Black Americans.
Students were encouraged to censor books written
by communists or Jews. In 1933, Berlin students
burnt 20,000 books outside the University of
Berlin. Nazi historians were given key posts in
Universities where they set about rewriting
history. Perhaps the most influential of these
was Albert Brachmann whose books on the Germanic
nature of Poland and the Baltic States helped
back up Hitlers aspirations in these areas.
Can you think of some reasons why?