Download Nazi Propaganda

How did the Nazis use propaganda to
control the German people?
Learning objective – to be able to assess
the effectiveness of Nazi propaganda.
I can describe some
of the ways that the
Nazis
used
propaganda.
Grade D
I can explain the
impact
of
Nazi
propaganda.
Grade B
I can explain and assess
the impact of Nazi
propaganda.
Grade A
Starter – list the different ways that politicians
can try to persuade people to agree with their
views.
What was Hitler’s view on the role
of propaganda in the Nazi state?
‘The powers of understanding of
the masses are feeble. And they
quickly forget. So effective
propaganda has to be limited to a
few bare essentials and those must
be as simple as possible. These
slogans should be repeated until
the very last person has come to
grasp with the idea’
Adolf Hitler in Mein Kampf
What was the role of Josef
Goebbels?
Goebbels took charge of Nazi
propaganda in 1928 and he led a
brilliant propaganda campaign in
the rise of the Nazis in the early
1930s.
Once the Nazis established
themselves in power, Goebbels
took charge of the Ministry of
Propaganda for the Nazi state in
1933.
What were the main forms of
propaganda used by the Nazi Party?
Newspapers
Radio
Films
Rallies
Culture
Sport
How did the Nazis control the
press?
Germany did not have national newspapers but,
instead, had over 4,700 local newspapers.
The controls implemented by the Nazis on the
press were –
• Anti-Nazi newspapers were shut down.
• Jews were banned from owning or working for
newspapers.
• Daily instructions were given to the press
reminding them on what they must report on,
what angle reports must take and what pictures
to publish.
• Approved newspapers were put in public
display boxes to read.
How did the Nazis control radio?
Hitler and Goebbels thought that people took more notice
of the spoken word over the written word. Radio was,
therefore, very important in their propaganda strategy
despite radios being very expensive and with no national
network.
The controls implemented by the Nazis on radio were –
• Goebbels set up the Reich Radio Company which
controlled all local radio stations.
• Millions of very cheap radios – ‘The People’s Receiver’ –
were made. By 1939, 70% of Germans had a radio and
loudspeakers were set up in public squares which
broadcast Nazi speeches and programmes.
• Foreign programmes were banned and Nazi approved
broadcasts included those on German history and German
music.
How did the Nazis control films?
The German film industry was very strong and of high quality. This meant that the
Nazis would need to keep up this high standard if people were to watch approved
films.
The controls implemented by the Nazis on film were –
• Entry to the cinema was only allowed at the beginning at before the film 45
minutes of official Nazi newsreels were shown.
• Film-makers had to sent proposed film plots to Goebbels for approval.
• The most popular films during the Nazi regime were adventures, romances and
comedies.
• Some openly pro-Nazi films, such as The Eternal Jew, were made.
• Nazi propaganda films, such as The Triumph of the Will, were seen as
masterpieces, with directors such as Leni Riefenstahl seen as groundbreaking in their
film techniques.
How did the Nazis control rallies?
Rallies and festivals were a very popular part of the
Nazis campaign for power and they continued to use
them to keep people loyal and remind them of their
culture and history.
The ways Nazis used rallies in their time in power were
–
• Built a bigger arena at Nuremberg specially for rallies
and parades. The Nuremberg Rallies were held annually
and the highlight of the propaganda calendar.
• The Nazis created a new calendar of important days
they expected people to celebrate, such as Hitler’s
birthday and German Culture Day in July.
• Rallies and Festivals were an important way to show
people that the Nazis brought order and control to
Germany.
How did the Nazis control culture?
Germany had a long cultural history which brought much pride to the nation. The Nazis
tried to control this through the Reich Chamber of Culture, which forced all artists,
writers and actors to become a member of – otherwise they were not allowed the
perform.
The ways Nazis imposed control over culture were –
• In 1933, the Nazis drew up a list of banned books which were removed from
bookshops and libraries.
• In 1935, public book burnings took place of books that were not approved, such as
those by Jews and Communists.
• The Nazis encouraged books about race, war and the history of Germany.
• The Nazis encouraged the theatre to put on plays about German history and political
dramas. They created the Nazi Cultural Association, which gave members cheap tickets.
• Music was tightly controlled with traditional German music, such as folk, marching and
classical music to the fore. Jazz music was banned.
How did the Nazis control sport?
The Nazi regime thought that sport was a good opportunity to show Nazi Germany in a
good light. They used the 1936 Berlin Olympics as a way of showing the world that Nazi
Germany was a civilised society and boost their international reputation as well as
domestic popularity.
The ways the Nazis used the Olympics were –
• Building the Olympic Stadium which could hold 110,000 people – the largest stadium
capacity in the world.
• It was faultlessly organised – showing precision and efficiency.
• The Germans won more medals than any other country.
• However, the main story that hit the international headlines was the Jesse Owens 4
Gold Medal haul.
Task
This word cloud summarises
the content of the story
Bonus Army.
In pairs, pick the 10 most
important terms in the word
cloud
and
using
the
PowerPoint and the sheet
given to you, list the 10
terms and, for each term,
write their relevance Nazi
propaganda
in
two
sentences.
Task
Complete the table on Nazi propaganda on the sheet provided. On
the table, you should record the following –
• Ways the Nazis used different forms of propaganda.
• Examples of the propaganda the Nazis used.
• Reach a judgement about how effective the Nazis used each
form of propaganda.
Plenary – a touch of Scrabble
What are the three key words
from this lesson that sums up
your learning?
Which word has the highest
value if you used in a game of
Scrabble?
Compare with the person
next to you. Which word has
the highest value?