THE ROLE PLAYED BY PROPAGANDA IN NAZI GERMANY

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2010NGfL Cymru Innovative Education Forum 2011
Jeff Moses 2011
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JM 2011
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Click on film to start / pause Double click to resume
Nazi anthem
Jeff Moses 2011
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Rudolf Hess
(Deputy Fuhrer)
speaking at Nazi
Party gathering.
This controversial
figure later fled to
Scotland in 1941. At
the Nuremberg
Trials, Hess was
sentenced to life
imprisonment.
In 1989 he was
found dead in his
cell at Spandau
Prison, Berlin.
Along with Albert
Speer, Hess was
one of a handful of
senior Nazis to
escape the gallows.

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 the systematic spreading of ideas
and information in order to
influence the thinking and actions
of the people at whom it is targeted.
 the organised spreading of
Information to promote the views of
a government or organisation with
the intention of persuading people
to think or behave in a certain way.
the long-term process of moulding
or controlling people’s thinking
through exposure to propaganda,
aimed especially at the young through
education.

Keep population
contented – mass
psychosis
Promote image of
Hitler as saviour of
the nation – Hitler
myth
Indoctrinate with Nazi
Weltanschauung or
‘world view’
Promote prejudice
and create a
Volksgemeinschaft
Glorify the regime
and its
achievements
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‘TOMORROW BELONGS TO ME’
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THE MESSAGEHOW
 Sport
 Parades
 Rallies
 Schools
 Youth movements
 Social policies
 Books
 Architecture
HOW
Newspapers
 Radio
 Cinema
 Posters
 Art
 Sculpture
Tomorrow belongs to me next slide

The ‘little-mouse doctor’
Goebbels
Movie next slide
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Dr. Paul Joseph Goebbels (29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945)
 A German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi
Germany from 1933 to 1945. His mission was to promote the
Hitler package to the masses.
 A powerful orator – only Hitler was better.
 One of his first acts was the burning of books rejected by the
Nazis.
 Fiercely anti-semitic, he issued the orders for Kristallnacht, the
night of anti-Jewish attacks in November 1938.
 He exerted totalitarian control over the media, arts and
information in Germany.
 Goebbels accused many of Germany's ethnic and national
minorities (such as the Poles, the Jews, the French) of trying to
destroy Germany.
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Click on film to play / pause Double click on film to resume
DR. JOSEPH GOEBBLES
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GOEBBELS SPEAK
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Fascinating extracts of
Goebbels . Ambitious,
but also privately
insecure, he felt that
Hitler never truly
rewarded him with
power bestowed on
other senior Nazis.
These extracts reveal
that, his skills as an
orator were bettered
only by Hitler.

9Jeff
Moses
Paul Joseph Goebbels, 1897-1945
NLN Materials - Materials
- Learning Object -
Investigating Hitler 1
I want to create
one single public
opinion
Goebbels once said:
‘ It is the task of state
propaganda so to simplify
complicated ways of thinking
that even the smallest man in
the street may understand.’
 What do you think is meant by
the term ‘ a free press’?
 Is it possible, as Goebbels
claimed, “..to create one single
public opinion”?
 If so, can you think of any
current examples where regimes
try to control and terrorise?
11

A truckload of confiscated
books arrives and is doled out
to the students for burning.
Below: Propaganda
Minister Joseph
Goebbels addresses the
gathering - putting it all in
context for his young
audience.
Nazi salutes and
anthems accompany
the smouldering pile.
BURNING OF
BOOKS
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Nazis take power movie
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LITERATURE
AND MUSIC
Jewish composers such
as Mahler and
Mendelssohn banned.
Jazz labelled ‘decadent’
Exodus of 2500
German writers
including Thomas
Mann
Hitler’s favourites, Wagner,
Strauss and Bruckner
predominated
Hard to identify
a single book,
play or poem
written and
approved during
Third Reich
worthy of
recognition
Mendelssohn’s
Violin Concerto
Wagner’s
Ride of the Valkyries
Audio mendelssohn/wagner

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Read the following sources:
Source 3

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LEARNING AND REFLECTION ZONE
1. Compile a list of bullet points identifying key points the sources make
about propaganda.
2. To what extent does Source D show the ease with which the Nazi regime
was able to control the German press?
3. Create a short presentation (no more than 7/8 slides) explaining how the
Nazis used propaganda in at least one of the following areas:
 Sport
 Film
 Art
 Architecture
 Youth
 Music
 Race
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Dr Joseph Goebbels
Reich Propaganda Minister
President of the Reich Chamber of Culture
Director of NSDAP Propaganda

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Vast bureaucratic
empire giving Goebbels
enormous power over
the cultural life of the
nation.
Could determine who
could not be employed
in all seven fields of
culture.

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A key reason why Hitler enjoyed a successful
relationship with the German people lay in their
perception that he was improving their lives.
Evidence such as falling unemployment and a
successful foreign policy helped this message.
This cartoon was published in the Westfälische
Landzeitung (a regional newspaper).
The top map emphasises Germany’s
weaknesses after the First World War while the
bottom shows how Hitler had transformed the
country by 1939.
Use the link to access the problem solving
activity on the NLN resource.
Problem Solving Slot
(Link to NLN below)
NLN Materials -

How new technology made it all
possible…
• Most crucial was the new medium of
the radio.
• April 1934 creation of Reich Radio Company. 13%
of staff dismissed on political and racial ground
and replaced with cronies.
• Mass production of cheap radio sets – the
People’s Receiver (Volksempfanger). 1935 7
million sets; by 1945 16 million.
• Hitler’s speeches could reach 56 million out of 70
million pop.
• Key speeches announced by sirens, and work put
on hold so all could hear public announcements.
• Medium of mass communication controlled
entirely by the Nazis.
• Wardens appointed reported on attendance and
co-ordinated important ‘national moments’.
19Jeff
Moses

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Press
• Problem – 4700 daily newspapers in 1933 loyal
to publishing companies, religion or political
organisations.
•Solution
 Nazi publishing house, Eheer Verlag, bought
up newspapers, so that by 1939 controlled two-
thirds of German press.
 News agencies merged into one, DNB. This
was state controlled, with result that material
vetted even before it got to journalists. 82% of
press under Nazi ownership.
 Goebbels introduced daily press conference at
the Propaganda Ministry to provide guidance on
editorial policy.
 Editors Law of October 1933 made newspaper
content sole responsibility of editor
What is your
opinion?
PRESS MANIPULATION
 Do you believe everything you
read in Britain’s news media?
 Would you expect Germans
living under Nazi tyranny to
believe Goebbels?
 Are the press too powerful
today?

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TERROR - PAST AND PRESENT

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Hitler
Montage next slide
What are all of these photos
trying to portray?
Hitler had an official photographer,
Heinrich Hoffmann.
A series of photos was widely
reproduced, some as postcards,
others inside cigarette packets.
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FUHRER POWER
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Hitler Montage Clips
Hitler’s
highly
effective
and
menacing
oratorical
skills can
be seen in
this video
montage.

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Great National Leader
Youth Redeemer
Father of nation
Defender
Caesar
Family Fuhrer
The Future
Protector
Saviour of Germany
Supreme Leader
Godfather of the Young
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
HITLER SPEECH MONTAGE
Hitler montage
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Film / Cinema
• Until 1942 four big film studios allowed to
remain privately owned. But Propaganda Ministry
gradually increased share ownership and then
nationalised.
• Reich Film Chamber regulated content of films
and employment within industry.
• About 14% of films had overtly political content.
All films had some political message. Leadership
was glorified, ‘ Blood and soil’, also demonising
of Jews and communists. Pacifist films banned
outright.
• Leni Riefensthal emerged as leading director.
Her film Triumph of the Will glorified militarism
and portrayed Hitler as the lone hero who saved
Germany and put the country on the path to
regeneration and victory.
• Newsreels had clear political message showing
stage managed events.
Lenni Riefenstahl with Goebbels – one of the greatest
movie-maker talents employed by the Nazis. Her film
“Triumph of the Will” is regarded as a propaganda
masterpiece that charts Hitler’s rise to power.
Do you think films
influence peoples’
political intentions?
NLN Materials

Meetings and Rallies
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What effect do you think
such rallies had on non-
participants
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Rallies transformed a
person ‘from a little worm
into a large dragon’.
Goebbels
Why did the rallies
have such impact?

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• Deliberate attempt to create a new type of social ritual. The Heil Hitler greeting,
the Nazi salute, the Horst Wessel anthem and the preponderance of militaristic
uniforms were all intended to strengthen the individuals identity with the regime.
30 January The seizure of power (1933)
20 April Hitler’s birthday
1 May National Day of Labour
21 June Summer Solstice
October Harvest Festival
Nazi Rituals
• Establishment of public festivals to commemorate historic days in the Nazi
calendar, for instance:

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THE POLITICS OF HATRED
Goebbels was fiercely
anti-semitic and an
influential adviser to
Hitler. The media were
used mercilessly to
promote vicious
propaganda against
the Jews. He
personally ordered the
Kristallnacht, the
night of anti-Jewish
attacks in November
1938
Title: Brood of Serpents
Caption: “The Jew’s symbol is
a worm, not without reason. He
seeks to creep up on what he
wants.”
September 1934
Title: The Curse in the
Blood
Caption: “Every little
Jewish baby grows up to be
a Jew.”

GOEBBELS SPEECH ON CULTURE
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Goebbles speech culture
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The Olympics
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QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
Click on to play film
 Hitler demanded an Olympic stadium
that exuded power and might
 Memorials to fallen soldiers were
placed within the gigantic complex linking
sport with military glory
 The Olympics were about celebrating
the physical superiority of the Aryan race.
 Germany topped the league tables –
but don’t mention Jesse Owens (inset
right)

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BERLIN OLYMPICS 1936 CLIP
BERLIN 1936
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The English soccer
team giving the Nazi
salute in the Olympic
stadium, Berlin 1938.
How do you think the
Nazi regime exploited
this photograph?
What do you think the
reaction would have
been in Britain?

Jeff Moses
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The caption reads ‘ The object of the exercise
– all together Olympic visitors - quick march.’
What message is
the artist of this
photo-montage,
John Hearfield,
trying to put
across about the
Nazis?

Culture: Nazi Art versus ‘Degenerate Art’
• Once in power, Hitler
began to remove
‘degenerate (corrupt) art
and foster ‘healthy’
Aryan art.
• Hitler’s view on art was
to be imposed on the
nation: clear visual
images that ordinary
Germans could
understand and be
inspired by were the
order of the day.
• Nazi art was to be clear,
direct and heroic.
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The Hitler Myth
Source: VLN Investigating Hitler. The video
clip is an extract of Goebbels explaining his
view of culture.

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Degenerate Art Movie
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JM2011
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TheSick Child painted by theacclaimed artist
Edward Munchwas labelled degeneratein 1937.
TheNazis banned all of his paintings which were
auctionedin Berlin a yearlater. Thispainting
was given to the Tate.
Carnival by Max Beckmann was also labelled as
degenerate filth. The artist was dismissed from
his teaching post by the Nazis and later fled
abroad. Beckmann once commented; “ I have
only tried to realise my conception of the world

Jeff Moses
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MAX BECKMANN

Jeff Moses 2011
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Catalogue cover for the
Exhibition of Degenerate Art.
Expressionism was singled out
as being the epitome of
modern degeneracy.
Shameless mockery of religious ideas
Artistic anarchy
Marxist propaganda
Filth and brothel material
Undermining of racial consciousness
Infinite store of Jewish rubbish
General insanity
Progressive destruction of form and colour

Jeff Moses 2011
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Hitler and his cronies touring the Munich
art exhibitions.
DISCUSSION AND
REASONING POINT
With reference to the
pictures from both
exhibitions and the
Nazi Degenerate Art
classification (slide
44), explain what they
show about
a)The attempt by the
regime to use art
b)The aims of the
regime
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
The video clip offers an interesting insight
Click to play
Degenerate with movie

Art in the Third Reich, 1937 –official art magazine.
The Fuhrer wants the German artist to leave his solitude and
speak to the people. This must start with the choice of the
subject. It has to be popular and comprehensive. It has to be
heroic in line with the ideals of National Socialism. It has to
declare its faith in the idea of beauty and the Nordic and
racially pure human being.
Nazi Art
46Jeff Moses 2011
PROBLEM SOLVING AND RESEARCH ACTIVITY
1. Explain what the Nazis meant by ‘Degenerate’?
2. Why do you think Hitler used this word to
describe certain works of Art?
3. What were Hitlers’s intentions?
4. How was propaganda used to influence people in
Germany regarding these works?
5. Carry out independent research on ‘Degenerate Art’.
Explain, using images, why the artists you selected had their
paintings censored.

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NAZI ARCHITECTURE
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Hitler described architecture as ‘the word in stone’. Buildings
would define the Thousand Year Reich
Vast new public buildings were designed to reflect Hitler’s favour
for neo-classicism: the symmetric simplicity and order of the
Greeks
A massive complex to hold rallies was built at Nuremberg that
would eventually become a 30-square kilometre complex. Hitler
drew up grandiose for Berlin as a new world capital –
Germania., as well as plans for over 30 other German cities.
Hitler once said: ‘Our enemies and our followers must realise
that these buildings strengthen our authority’.

Advances in construction materials and techniques
allowed more impressive buildings to be constructed to
demonstrate the power of the state.
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Hitler’s Germania:
the planned rebuilding of Berlin
How might such
buildings be used
as evidence about the
Third Reich?
Think about style,
Nazis values and the
impression such
buildings were
designed to make. Hitler’s Chancellery

Albert Speer
• Albert Speer (March 19, 1905 – September 1, 1981)
• Was, for a part of World War II, Minister of
Armaments and War Production for the Third Reich.
• Speer joined the Nazi Party in 1931. His architectural
skills made him increasingly prominent within the
Party and he became a member of Hitler's inner
circle.
• Speer also made plans to reconstruct Berlin on a
grand scale, with huge buildings, wide boulevards,
and a reorganized transportation system.
• His attempts to avoid bureaucracy worked well. He
kept the wishes of working men and women in mind
and, in the process, won many new friends.
• “The Nazi who said sorry", he accepted
responsibility at the Nuremberg trials and in his
memoirs for crimes of the Nazi regime.
JM 2011 5151Jeff Moses 2011

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 Difficult for historians’ to assess effectiveness of Nazi propaganda
 Extent of influence has implications for thorny issue of public opinion
 Initial judgements glibly assumed that Nazi propaganda major achievement due
to its pervasiveness. But recent research from oral history has raised serious
doubts about its ability to penetrate all sections of the German psyche.
 Propaganda succeeded in a sense that it:
1) cultivated the ‘Hitler myth’ of him as an all-powerful leader
2) strengthened the Nazi regime after Germany’s economic and political crisis,
1929-33
3) appealed effectively to reinforce traditional family values and nationalism
4) influenced opinions of those most susceptible.

Jeff Moses 2011 53
HOWEVER, IT FAILED IN ITS
ATTEMPT:
 to denounce the Christian Churches
 to seduce the working classes away from their
established identity through the ideal of
Volksgemeinschaft
 to develop a distinctive Nazi culture
Judgements can only be provisional and
tentative. Nazi propaganda was most
successful when it exploited and perverted
existing widely held prejudices, fears and
ignorance.
1 “GIVE ME FOUR YEARS”

THE ROLE PLAYED BY PROPAGANDA IN NAZI GERMANY

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