Propaganda – information posed to an audience with the intent to persuade in favour of one side of an idea, often through biased or emotionally stirring content - was one of the most powerful weapons in Hitler’s artillery during 1933-1939. As part of the Nazi regime, propaganda tailored towards the public was utilised heavily by Joseph Goebbels (Minister for Enlightenment and Propaganda) in Hitler’s campaign. Propaganda had a significant impact on the conformity of the German citizens at this time. This period consisted of constant political promotion of the Nazi party after Hitler was elected as Chancellor of Germany. Much of this promotional advertisement was done through propaganda such as posters, movies, newspaper articles, radio and other forms of communication between the public, media agencies and the government. The content covered was often biased towards the Nazi Party and influenced the opinions of the public while also being ever present and constantly prompting action and conformity to the regime. Hitler’s ideals were enforced through dictatorial means, and if the military wasn’t enough to create fear in the minds of the public, then the propaganda shamed and dehumanised those for thinking anything other than what the Nazi’s told one to believe.
The Nazis were adept propagandists who utilised professional advertising techniques and modern technology of that time period to reach audiences with their message. Upon claiming power, Adolf Hitler established the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda to mould the minds of the German public to his liking. Nazi media and propaganda played an important role in the anti-sematic views and actions of the German people, and ultimately the persecution and massacre of Europe’s Jews, now referred to as the Holocaust. The political propaganda encouraged racism and aggression that united the nation against a common enemy, persuading all the conform in rising up against the Jews. Goebbels was able to infiltrate the minds of the German’s through various forms of propaganda including film/movies, newspaper articles and advertisements, radio, art and culture and public events such as political gatherings and rallies offering displays of power through military presence. These forms of propaganda sought to foster hatred like that of “The Eternal Jew (1940), directed by Fritz Hippler, [which] portrayed Jews as wandering cultural parasites, consumed by sex and money.” Other films testified to the strength of the German nation, like that of “The Triumph of the Will (1935) by Leni Riefenstahl, [which] glorified Hitler and the National Socialist movement.” These films and other forms of propaganda created examples of how to think and act in order to adopt the Nazi regime into one’s lifestyle, strongly influencing the opinions and views of the public in order to gain support for Hitler and his ideals.
Post-election propaganda supported only the Nazi Party, with dictatorial laws in place to ensure the people only saw what Hitler and Goebbels wanted them to see. It allowed for the ideals of the party to not only be known, but drilled into the back of minds, remembered and followed for years to come. Many sources of entertainment and even general actions of daily life were riddled with Nazism, many including films like Der ewige Jude (The Eternal Jew), a documentary on Jews and how they should be treated at the time, as well as subjects taught at school that had been altered as of Hitler’s rise to power to contain Nazi values such as Race Study and Party Beliefs. The appearance of biased Nazi propaganda, either directly through advertisement or posters, or indirectly in movies or books was always censored to contain specific information, and always targeted to the public to ensure conformity in ones way of thinking. The constant presence of blaring Nazism was part of one goal held by the Ministry for Enlightenment and Propaganda, with it being “not enough for people to be reconciled to our regime, to be persuaded to adopt a neutral attitude towards us,” as this does not ensure ones devotion to the Nazi cause, but “Rather, we want to work on people until they have capitulated,” to ensure absolute understanding through brainwashing. The presence of propaganda was so constant and relentless, it left little to no room for individual thought and reinforced the ideas of conforming to Nazism through every outlet possible.
Nazi ideals and values were instilled into the German people through propaganda, with actions prompted by those ideals being taken in order to conform with the Aryan image. The essential and only job of an Aryan female was to “[live] strictly for her husband and her children,” and abide by the three K’s: Kinder (Children), Küche (Kitchen) and Kirche (Church) . Typical Aryan males were expected to become soldiers or a part of the working class, with young boys joining youth organisation to learn to shoot riffles and to perform patriotic songs of Germany . These roles were inevitably assumed by the German public, persuaded by propaganda into the Aryan lifestyle and fulfilling it with pride, as seen below in posters displaying the differing gender roles of as part of the Nazi Regime. The traditional values exuded through Nazism were transferred onto the public, if it had not already validated the same ideals some held. Changes were already occurring and with the encouragement of these ideals through propaganda, multiple laws being passed and reinforcement from the military, men gained the role of Germany’s protectors, while women accepted the roles of carers, and most taking more pride in completing their “duty” to their country, conforming to the Nazi beliefs of a traditional society.
Propaganda played an integral role in influencing the populations to side with Nazi values and Hitler’s ideal German nation. The impact of Hitler and Goebbels weaponised words, visuals and scare tactics convinced a nation to turn from what was once a modern democracy to a traditional dictatorship and hold the values of one too. The biased materials and distorted content fed to the public assisted in shaping the perfect Aryan, while the constant flow of propaganda created an entire population movement to value the growth of the German people and it’s nation’s power above all else. Propaganda was one of the most impactful components of Hitler’s Nazi regime that altered the thoughts, actions and way of living of an entire country in his favour.Propaganda – information posed to an audience with the intent to persuade in favour of one side of an idea, often through biased or emotionally stirring content - was one of the most powerful weapons in Hitler’s artillery during 1933-1939. As part of the Nazi regime, propaganda tailored towards the public was utilised heavily by Joseph Goebbels (Minister for Enlightenment and Propaganda) in Hitler’s campaign. Propaganda had a significant impact on the conformity of the German citizens at this time. This period consisted of constant political promotion of the Nazi party after Hitler was elected as Chancellor of Germany. Much of this promotional advertisement was done through propaganda such as posters, movies, newspaper articles, radio and other forms of communication between the public, media agencies and the government. The content covered was often biased towards the Nazi Party and influenced the opinions of the public while also being ever present and constantly prompting action and conformity to the regime. Hitler’s ideals were enforced through dictatorial means, and if the military wasn’t enough to create fear in the minds of the public, then the propaganda shamed and dehumanised those for thinking anything other than what the Nazi’s told one to believe.
Propaganda played an integral role in influencing the populations to side with Nazi values and Hitler’s ideal German nation. The impact of Hitler and Goebbels weaponised words, visuals and scare tactics convinced a nation to turn from what was once a modern democracy to a traditional dictatorship and hold the values of one too. The biased materials and distorted content fed to the public assisted in shaping the perfect Aryan, while the constant flow of propaganda created an entire population movement to value the growth of the German people and it’s nation’s power above all else. Propaganda was one of the most impactful components of Hitler’s Nazi regime that altered the thoughts, actions and way of living of an entire country in his favour.