Censorship and Propaganda Flashcards
What is propaganda?
Propaganda is the use of information, true or false, to influence what people think or the way they act. Propaganda was used by both sides in the war.
What is censorship?
Censorship is controlling the circulation of certain information - in newspapers, radio broadcasts, private letters and even conversations.
What was the aim of the propaganda of the Ministry of Information?
Propaganda was used in Britain to boost the morale of the British public, encourage patriotic feeling and persuade people to do (and not to do) certain things to help the war effort.
Who was subjected to censorship?
- Everybody.
- Civilian letters were opened and checked to make sure important information was not given away,
- the armed forces had their own censors to go through the troops’ mail
- Even Winston Churchill had telephone calls cut by telephone censors if he was in danger of revealing secret information.
When was the Ministry of Information established?
The Ministry of Information (MOI) was formed on 4 September 1939, the day after Britain’s declaration of war, and the first Minister was sworn into Office on 5 September 1939.
Who was the Minister of Information?
Lord Macmillan was sworn in as its first Minister on 5 September 1939.
Was the MOI popular?
At first, no - their first posters were criticised because they seemed to be directed only at the working class, or because they put pressure on individuals.
Give an example of how censorship was used with the news.
- Certain pieces of news were not broadcast because the MoI thought they would damage morale (e.g. the government covered up reports of ships sunk by Japanese kamikaze pilots).
- Certain photos were banned (e.g. those showing dead children, and one of a bomb which had broken through into an Underground station).
- The Communist newspaper The Daily Worker was banned in 1941 because it opposed the war.
How was propaganda used to try and keep the invention of RADAR secret?
Early in the war, the MoI kept the invention of radar secret - instead, it said that RAF pilots had been eating carrots and could see in the dark!
Was the BBC censored?
- The MoI had the right to control the BBC - although it never did;
- the BBC voluntarily controlled the flow of information in a sensible way (self-imposed censorship). In 1939, the BBC was expanded to 23 transmitters and 4233 employees.
How was morale kept up by propaganda?
In September 1939, the BBC started to broadcast Tommy Handley’s comedy programme: It’s That Man Again! (ITMA). Comedy was found to be a wonderful way of keeping up morale.Also, the BBC started a programme called ‘Music While You Work’ because they had found that productivity in factories went up if cheerful music was played to workers.
Who were ‘Cooper’s Snoopers’?
Another mistake by the MOI in July 1940 when the Daily Herald newspaper began a fierce campaign against the use of ‘gestapo techniques’ (the MOI trying to collect public opinion information in invasive ways, e.g. doorstep polls), and coined the epithet ‘Cooper’s Snoopers’ (after Duff Cooper, the Minister of Information).
Did the MOI’s methods improve?
Yes, a new Minister of Information - Brendan Bracken - used his experience as a newspaper editor and lasted until the end of the war.
What was ‘Black Propaganda’?
‘Black Propaganda’ is where the government aims messages at the enemy population, trying to confuse or demoralise them.
Give an example of ‘Black Propaganda’.
Perhaps the most well-known example of this was William Joyce, who broadcast ‘news’ from Germany every night, telling the British people that the war was hopeless and that they were being defeated. His posh, sing-song accent - ‘This is Jarmany calling’ - led people to nickname him Lord Haw-Haw. Although it was forbidden, some 6 million people tuned in to hear him every night - mainly to have a laugh at his accent and exaggerated claims.
