Propaganda & Censorship in Nazi Germany (WJEC Eduqas GCSE History): Revision Note

Summary 

Propaganda and censorship were essential in enabling the Nazis to maintain control over and influence the German people. The German population was bombarded with Nazi messages in a variety of media, including radio, newspapers, films and magazines.

To ensure no rival viewpoints or perspectives influenced the German people, everything was strictly censored. This included what was played on the radio, shown in cinemas and displayed in art galleries. 

Goebbels & Propaganda

What is propaganda?

• Propaganda is one-sided information designed to influence people’s opinions

• The Nazi government focused a lot of time and money on propaganda

  • They believed that if people, especially young people, saw or listened to propaganda, they would support the Nazi regime for life

• Joseph Goebbels was in charge of Nazi propaganda

  • His official title was Minister for People’s Enlightenment and Propaganda

• Nazi propaganda focused on three key messages

1. That the Jewish people are the enemy of the state

2. That support of Nazi policies was essential 

3. That the Nazi Party would restore Germany's pride and wealth

Use of Rallies in Nazi Germany

• The Nazi Party had used rallies throughout the 1920s and early 1930s

• The declaration of Hitler as Führer in 1934 allowed him to merge the identity of the Nazi Party with that of Germany:

  • Rallies became more frequent and created a sense of unity

  • They were used to advertise the strength of the German Army

  • The rallies were held despite the military restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles

• Nuremberg, a city in the centre of Germany, was chosen to host annual rallies from 1933-38

  • A special arena was created to host the rallies

    • It was designed by Albert Speer, Hitler’s favourite architect

  • The arena had 152 searchlights, which shone into the night sky

  • It became known as the Cathedral of Light

Radio and cinema in Nazi Germany

• Radios were a relatively new technology in the 1930s

• The Nazis recognised their potential as a tool to communicate political messages:

  • Goebbels had relied on the radio during the pivotal election years of 1932 and 1933

• After 1933, Goebbels censored most radio stations

• The stations were used to spread Nazi beliefs and messaging

  • The Nazis wanted to ensure that as many German households as possible had a radio

  • This allowedNazi propaganda to be broadcast directly into their living rooms 

The Volksempfänger (The People’s Receiver)

Films

• Cinema was very popular in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s

• After 1933, every film had to be approved by the Nazi government

• Famous Nazi films include:

  • Triumph of the Will (1935)

    • Directed by Leni Riefenstahl 

    • Presented the strength and power of the Nazi Party at the Nuremberg rallies

  • Verräter (Traitor) (1936)

    • Told the story of a traitor who tried to damage German arms factories

    • His plans are foiled by the heroic Gestapo 

Censorship of newspapers and the arts in Nazi Germany

What is censorship?

• Censorship is when the government controls what people see, hear, watch or read

• In 1933, the Nazi government introduced strict censorship laws

  • They wanted to get the Nazi message across but they also wanted to prevent people from hearing different perspectives or viewpoints

Censorship in Nazi Germany

• Every form of media was highly censored by Goebbels

Newspapers

• All non-Nazi newspapers and magazines were closed down 

  • More than 1,600 newspapers and thousands more magazines had been forced to shut down by 1935

  • The Propaganda Ministry told editors what they could print

  • Those who refused to obey the Nazis were arrested and sent to concentration camps

Art

• Goebbels established the Reich Chamber of Culture 

• He forced all artists, musicians and writers to become members

  • If they did not join, their work was automatically banned

  • This caused many artists to leave Germany in the 1930s

• Hitler hated modern impressionist and abstract art and banned it

  • He wanted art that portrayed perfect Aryans working hard and living simple, peasant lives

  • He wanted women to be shown as housewives

• Modern music, such as jazz and swing, was hated by the Nazis and banned

  • Its origins and stars were Black Americans, whom the Nazis believed belonged to an inferior race

  • Instead, they favoured classical German composers such as Bach, Beethoven and Wagner

• Modernist architecture, such as that from the Bauhaus, was completely rejected by the Nazis

  • Greek or Roman-style buildings were made in Nazi Germany, and from 1934 onwards, all new public buildings had classical sculptures outside them