Nazi Propaganda and the Second World War

Was Nazi wartime propaganda a 'totalitarian' mechanism that controlled the perceptions of the Germans? Was it as effective as generally thought? Did it 'win' the psychological war over the minds of the population? Was Joseph Goebbels the 'mastermind' of the Third Reich? This book analyzes the factors that determined the organization, conduct and output of Nazi propaganda during World War II, in an attempt to re-assess previously inflated perceptions about the influence of Nazi propaganda and the role of the regime's propagandists in the outcome of the 1939-45 military conflict.

Aristotle A. Kallis is Lecturer in European Studies at Lancaster University, UK.

List of Abbreviations

viii

Acknowledgements

x

Introduction: 'Totalitarianism', Propaganda, War and the Third Reich

1

(15)

Propaganda, propagandist and the audience

1

(5)

Effective propaganda and the limits of NS 'totalitarianism'

6

(6)

Main premises

12

(1)

Structure and foci of the book

13

(3)

1 Propaganda, 'Co-ordination' and 'Centralisation': The Goebbels Network in Search of a Total Empire

16

(24)

Cinema

19

(7)

Press

26

(5)

Broadcasting

31

(9)

2 'Polyocracy' versus 'Centralisation': The Multiple 'Networks' of NS Propaganda

40

(23)

Polyocracy and 'charismatic' power in the NS regime

40

(3)

The role of Goebbels in NS propaganda: power-base and limits

43

(4)

The 'Dietrich network'

47

(2)

The 'Ribbentrop' network

49

(2)

The case of Alfred Rosenberg

51

(2)

The rise of Martin Bormann

53

(3)

The '0KW network'

56

(2)

Himmler and Speer

58

(1)

The 'Goebbels network' strikes back: 1943-45

59

(4)

3 The Discourses of NS Propaganda: Long-Term Emplotment and Short-Term Justification

63

(30)

NS propaganda and long-term positive integration

65

(5)

Negative integration: the (powerful) common denominator

70

(1)

The early common denominator: 'plutocrats' and 'the Jew'

71

(5)

Anti-Bolshevism

76

(7)

The construction of a negative mega-narrative: the 'Jewish-Bolshevik-plutocratic alliance'

83

(10)

4 From 'Short Campaign' to 'Gigantic Confrontation': NS Propaganda and the Justification of War, 1939-41

93

(18)

Justifying 'war', 1939

93

(5)

From plan to invasion: the campaign against Poland and the first 'triumph'

98

(2)

The campaign against the west: the second 'triumph'

100

(4)

NS policy (and propaganda) at crossroads: Britain or Russia?

104

(2)

Towards the attack on the Soviet Union ('Barbarossa')

106

(5)

5 From Triumph to Disaster: NS Propaganda from the Launch of 'Barbarossa' until Stalingrad

111

(19)

The first stage of 'Barbarossa' (1941)

111

(6)

The first adversities: Pearl Harbour, 'General Winter' and the extension of the war

117

(4)

The 'year of decision': 1942

121

(4)

The turning point: Stalingrad (September 1942-January 1943)

125

(5)

6 NS Propaganda and the Loss of the Monopoly of Truth (1943-44)

130

(23)

The Stalingrad aftermath: NS propaganda and 'public opinion'

130

(3)

Bouncing back after Stalingrad: 'Total war' and 'fear'

133

(4)

The subversion of the regime's monopoly of truth

137

(8)

The 'Hitler-cult': staying power and disintegration

145

(3)

The withdrawal of Hitler - a new role for Goebbels?

148

(5)

7 The Winding Road to Defeat: The Propaganda of Diversion and Negative Integration

153

(32)

NS propaganda from consensus to negative integration

153

(1)

In search for 'victory'

154

(6)

Allied 'terror attacks' and 'retaliation' (Vergeltung)

160

(8)

The eastern front: defeat, 'shortening' and 'planned evacuation'

168

(5)

Diverting attention from the east and the west

173

(5)

Preparing for the final showdown

178

(7)

8 Cinema and Totalitarian Propaganda: 'Information' and 'Leisure' in NS Germany, 1939-45

185

(33)

The Wochenschau (newsreel)

188

(6)

Documentary as reality

194

(4)

The historical film as contemporary narrative

198

(9)

Commercial and politically valuable? The 'entertainment film' and NS propaganda

207

(6)

Managing German cinema, 1939-45

213

(5)

Conclusions: Legitimising the Impossible?

218

(6)

Notes

224

(42)

Bibliography

266

(17)

Index

283

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Nazi Propaganda and the Second World War

Summary

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Table of Contents

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Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

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