Difference between revisions of "World War 2 Propaganda"

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American Studies Research Paper

Paper

As the United States entered World War II, the American government needed to make sure the entire country was marching in step with the war effort. The government created the Office of War Information (OWI) in order to coordinate the propaganda created for Americans. What it was involved in… In addition to the official government agency, many private companies reassigned their advertising departments to produce propaganda to help the war effort, especially to increase production at the nations’ firms. In fact, some of the most memorable propaganda was not produced by the government. The subject of most of the propaganda was to mobile the home front, and to communicate why we were fighting this war. For many years before the United States’ entry into World War 2, the United States was an isolationist nation.

Before 1942, the government split the task of providing information to the public between many different agencies: the Office of Facts and Figures, the Office of Government Reports, the Office of Emergency Management’s Department of Information, and the Office of Co-Ordinator of Information. On June 13, 1942, Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Office of War Information, consolidating different agencies in order to "dissemination of general public information on the war effort." FDR appointed Elmer Davis to head the new agency tasked with coordinating the press, radio and film industries into selling the war to the American people. The agency had 2 purposes: glorify the war and tell the Americans at home why their sacrifices were necessary. At first the agency tried to truthfully represent the war, but later moved onto present slanted works filled with stereotypes of the enemy. The OWI gathered data and controlled the release of news to the American people, emphasizing the importance of the war and why we needed to win. The agency had an annual budget of $25 million and employed 30,000 people.

The OWI was not without problems however. The OWI had to fight with military leaders who did not like the work the OWI was doing. In addition many later accused the OWI of harboring Communists, perhaps because of its connection with Hollywood or the fact that its leader, Elmer Davis, spoke out against McCarthyism. In addition many Congressmen thought that the OWI was too pro-Roosevelt especially with the 1944 election approaching. In 1943, Congress cut the OWI’s funding, stopping most of its programs on the home front.

To start with, Frank Capra’s films Why We Fight gives background on the war and warns about the danger of the imperialistic Axis. The "Army Orientation Course" was a series of dull pamphlets and lectures in 1940. In 1942, General George C. Marshall asked Capra to make a film to explain to the GIs why America was taking part in the war. Capra drew inspiration from the Nazi film Triumph of Will. The film was created on a tight budget by putting together footage from captured enemy propaganda, old movies, and newly created animated maps. At first the film was only supposed to be for soldiers. However, Roosevelt and Churchill wanted the films to be shown to the general public. The films revolutionized documentary film making and military training methods. For his service, Frank Capra was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal.

The first film in Why We Fight, Prelude to War starts out by presenting the United States as the "free world" which has a long history of freedom set by religious and political documents. It then contrasts this with a world of slavery lead by a "rabble-rouser," Hitler, who is out for his selfish interests. The people in this slave world gave up their individualism to allow their governments to pursue imperialistic pursuits. In addition the governments of these countries controlled all of the news sources and filled them with propaganda. However it does not mention that the US government was similarly controlling public information. (made it up to 17 min – use more if needed)

Wartime posters tried to use the advertising techniques of the time to sell the idea that the factory and home were also arenas of the war and the factory workers and families were vital to the war’s success. They tried to explain to the people why their sacrifices of consumer goods were necessary as well as try to create a culture which would help the war. For example the government reminded soldiers that "loose lips sink ships," as the enemy was just around the corner.

Posters were used since they were simple, made with silk-screen technology to be quickly reproduced. The WPA published the handbook How to Make and Reproduce Posters, which declared that "Anyone can make a poster." They would be put in places traditional advertising did not reach such as schools, factories, offices, and store windows. The OWI even conducted surveys in factories to test worker’s impressions of new posters.

Private firms also made posters, even outnumbering the amount of official government-issued posters. Manufactures also used posters and the war effort to get employees to "suspend union rules, abandon traditional work patterns, and make sacrifices in the name of patriotism." S. D. Warren Company even published a catalog of posters that they were selling to business to encourage workers to increase production. The government also urged "joint labor-management coordinating committees" to work together to increase morale and to resolve issues between labor and management. General Motor’s poster "Together We Can Do It" exemplifies this. The posters also tried to paint workers as "production soldiers", for example in "Wear it Proudly". Some posters encouraged workers to ask their supervisors if the had any questions ("Any Questions about York Work? Ask Your Supervisor!"). Others suggested that wasting time was hurting Americans ("Kiling Time Is Killing Men").

One of the most well-known symbols during the war was, Rosie the Riveter. Rosie made it seem patriotic for women to work outside the house. Women filled the jobs of men who left to fight the war. With the help of the Rosie images, more than 6 million women joined the workforce. One of the most recognizable posters of "Rosie" is We Can Do It! by J. Howard Miller for the Westinghouse War Production Co-Ordinating Committee. After the war, Rosie became a symbol of feminism and women’s economic roles in the workplace.

Posters frequently used stereotypical images of the enemy giving instructions to workers telling them to work slower. For example in "Thanks for Loafing, Pal!," Hitler thanks an American worker for slacking. These posters tried to get Americans to reject this possibility by working harder. Painting stereotypical pictures of enemy

Posters also idolized America’s streets, families, optimism, and standard of living.

Others tried to show the grim realities of a war at home. For example, "Dear God, Keep Them Safe!" by the Kroger Grocery and Baking Company shows two school children wearing gas masks. These posters attempted to get workers to work harder to avoid this possibility.

The OWI also had the responsibility of reviewing the government’s posters. At first the two groups clashed over the poster designs. One group liked the "war art" style featuring stylized symbols and images. Francis Brennan, who was the former art director of Fortune Magazine wanted posters to combine the sophisticated style of contemporary art with the promotion of war aims. For example, "Strong in the Strength of the Lord", used artwork combined with an abstract message of supporting "the cause". Another group, which had worked in the advertising industry, wanted the government’s posters to be more like advertisements. These posters tried to combine the messages of sacrifice with the smiling faces and carefree households found in advertising.

The government also sought to control Hollywood and the movie industry. Before the war, the government was trying to get Hollywood to cut back on the interventionalist tone of movies, since the government was trying to play an isolationist role. However after the war started, the OWI guided the movie industry in glorifying the war, the men who served in it, and the American home front which supported the troops. The OWI created the Bureau of Motion Pictures (BMP) which had offices in Washington, D.C., New York and Los Angeles.

At the start of the war, the OWI asked filmmakers to think about 7 questions as they made movies:

• Will this picture help win the war?
• What war information problem does it seek to clarify, dramatize, or interpret?
• If it is an "escape" picture, will it harm the war effort by creating a false picture of America, her allies, or the world we live in?
• Does it merely use the war as the basis for a profitable picture, contributing nothing of real significance to the war effort and possibly lessening the effect of other pictures of more importance?
• Does it contribute something new to our understanding of the world conflict and the various forces involved, or has the subject already been adequately covered?
• When the picture reaches its maximum circulation on the screen, will it reflect conditions as they are and fill a need current at that time, or will it be out-dated?
• Does the picture tell the truth or will the young people of today have reason to say they were misled by propaganda?

The OWI at the start of the war wanted to represent the war truthfully. Thus, the last question was important for them. However, as the war became bogged down, the OWI instructed Hollywood to produce more symbolic and one-sided films. The BMP reviewed over 1,650 movie scripts during the war. The recommendations ranged from adding a few lines of inspirational dialogue to recommending that the movie be withheld until after the war.

Hollywood also helped to boost morale in America with movies portraying idealistic middle class families who managed well through the pressures of family, working, and rations. Movies such as Joe Smith, American portrayed hardworking Americans doing their duty by working and not leaking secrets to the enemy.

Hollywood produced light-hearted song and dance movies to get American’s mind off of the war at least for the length of the movie. These movies include Holiday Inn, Stage Door Canteen. Other movies also helped Americans remember what they were fighting for with nostalgia films portraying turn-of-the century life. Meet Me In St. Louis and Life With Father serve as examples of these films.

Americans in the Gilded Age followed Hollywood celebrities and yearned to be like them. Hollywood celebrities supported the war by putting on USO shows, or even enlisting in the military. Others appeared in advertisements and publicity tours to sell war bonds, promote scrap drives.

The BMP also produced documentary films for showings at schools, churches, and other community programs. Films like Why We Fight and Autobiography of a Jeep explained the war effort to the American people. The OWI also produced 52 short films titled American Speaks. About half of the films were written by OWI staff while Hollywood screenwriters wrote the other half. By January of 1943, 4.7 million people had watched 31,000 showings of BWI films.

Victory Gardens - http://www.victoryseeds.com/TheVictoryGarden/page2.html

Photographs

Nor all rosy

Powerful

Closing

Outline

Actual

• OWI
• Why We Fight
• Posters
• Movies

At First

• Basics and OWI
• Reasons and Importance
• Types and Artistic Styles
  • 7 questions evaluating movies
• Causes Advocated for
• Effects

Sources

• U. S. Office of War Information (OWI) Collection. 3 Fed 2008. Library of Congress. 2 Apr 2008 <http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/awhhtml/awrs9/owi.html>.
• War Aims Through Art: The U.S. Office of War Information. 18 Jan 2000. Smithsonian Institution. 2 Apr 2008 <http://americanhistory.si.edu/victory/victory5.htm>.
• Collection of posters: http://digital.library.unt.edu/browse/collection/wwpc/
• Faragher, John Mack, Mari Jo Buhle, Daniel Czitrom, and Susan H. Armitage. Out of Many. Revised 3^rd edition. Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ: 2002.
• Bauer, Lt. Colonel Eddy. Marshall Cavendish Illustrated Encyclopedia of World War II. Vol 6. Pg 1689-1715. Marshall Cavendish: NY, 1985.
• Roosevelt, Franklin D. Executive Order 9182 Establishing the Office of War Information. 13 June 1924. Office of the President. 2 Apr 2008 <http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/print.php?pid=16273>.
• Photos: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsahtml/fahome.html
• Soroka, Kristin. "Motion Pictures and Propaganda." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood2.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "Office of War Information." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood3.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "The Battle Ground." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood4.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "Morale Films: Courage, Comedy, and American Nostalgia." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood5.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "The Stars Go to War." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood7.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "Hollywood Homefront Mobilization." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywood8.html>.
• Soroka, Kristin. "Selective Filmography." Hollywood at War. 13 Mar 1999. University of San Diego. 2 Apr 2008 <http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~ksoroka/hollywoodfilm.html>.

To Research

• http://www.purewatergazette.net/propagandainamerica.htm
• http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/index.html
• http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/designs_for_democracy/index.html
• http://www.bartleby.com/65/of/OfficeWa.html
• http://www.unt.edu/honors/eaglefeather/2004_Issue/PierceD2.shtml