Resistance . During the Phoney War, the book
Why Britain is at War sold a hundred thousand copies. His calls for fight to victory inspired a hardening of public opinion. Determination raised the numbers of the
Home Guard and inspired a willingness to fight to the last ditch, in a manner rather similar to Japanese determination, and the slogan "You can always take one with you" was used in the grimmest times of the war.
Victories British victories were announced to the public for morale purposes, and broadcast to Germany for purposes of undermining morale. Even during
Dunkirk, an optimistic spin was put on how the soldiers were eager to return. The turn of the war made BBC's war commentaries much more stirring. such as Land Army, or ATS. Films and posters encouraged women to go to work in munitions factories. Pictures of the Armed Forces often called for support from civilians, and posters juxtaposed civilian workers and soldiers to urge that the forces were relying on them and instruct them in the importance of their role. People were encouraged to spend holidays assisting at harvest, even when they were also encouraged to stay home.
Evacuation of children Posters urged children to be sent from London. Both pamphlets and posters urged that evacuated children not be brought back.
Blackout Posters outlined what to do when travelling in a blackout. Instructions included the advice that torches should be pointed downwards to avoid blinding people, that care should be taken while crossing roads, and that when alighting from a train, passengers should check that the door opened on to a platform. This was to be applied at work, as well, even though the firm was paying for wasted fuel. Recipes were spread for cooking efficiently and nutritiously on the restricted diet that included many substitutions. The Ministry of Food urged that it was not clever to take more than your share. For train journeys, posters urged consideration of whether the trip was necessary and the importance of food and ammunition carried by train. The difficulties of the
Battle of the Atlantic led to the slogan "Dig for Victory!" Every garden could be used for this purpose. Radio broadcasts encouraged the nation that growing your own food was a form of recreation, not wartime sacrifice. An exhibition, "Private Scrap" was created to demonstrate the uses of scrap and underscore the link between civilian efforts and the military forces. Iron railings and aluminium pots were targeted. even depicting weapons as coming directly from the efforts of women to save scrap.
Axis British propaganda, like American propaganda, presented the war as an issue of good versus evil, a factor that allowed them to rouse the population to fight a just war, and use themes of resistance and liberation to occupied countries. Germany was treated as a particular font of evil within the Axis, and a greater threat than Japan and Italy. The film
Men of the Lightship was created to foment anti-German feeling; not only do the Germans attack a lightship, not traditionally regarded as a proper target, but machine-gun the survivors in the water, so that only one lives. Propaganda shifted from downplaying raids to playing them up, to inspire hatred of the enemy, and sympathy with neutrals, despite the encouragement that this might give the enemy and its potential impact on the calm of the populace. Atrocity reports were presented both as summaries of known facts and news reports as they occurred.
Alternative history novels depicted Nazi invasions of Great Britain as a form of "cautionary tales". Up until 1943, these were grim tales, presenting British victims; after that, a more heroic note increased. The instant—and unauthorised—rejection of the peace terms of Hitler's 19 July 1940 speech by
Sefton Delmer on the BBC produced a great impact on Germany; Goebbels believed it had to show governmental inspiration, and while propaganda efforts were made to talk the British around, the German press were instructed to attack the rejection. The speed of the rejection unquestionably led the great impact, which authorisation would have prevented; this produced consternation in the government, as the effect was desirable, but they did not know whether such a spokesman would again happen to say what the government wanted.
Anti-Japanese Although
Winston Churchill found the disaster at Singapore and the loss of
Burma,
Hong Kong, and Malaya humiliating,
Brendan Bracken, the minister of information regarded it as impossible to rouse the British to sentiments similar to those the British public held toward Germany, as the Japanese were across the globe and the Germans there, and his views prevailed. The Pacific war was regarded as peripheral by most British, but
anti-Japanese sentiment was used in one African recruiting poster. Posters depicting British and Australian unity often featured a Japanese figure. It was so neglected in news and propaganda that it was termed the "forgotten army". Similar campaigns were conducted in Malaya and Singapore, for the same reason, even though military officials preferred joining forces with the American campaigns. A pamphlet for soldiers, "The Japanese in Battle" set out to debunk the myth of the Japanese superman after the initial wave of Japanese victories.
The Spectator supported the bombing of Japan due to Japanese atrocities committed against downed Allied airmen and in China.
Anti-Italian Italy's entrance to the war was derided for their having waited until victory looked secure, but the anti-Italian feeling never reached the pitch of anti-German sentiment. Promoting disunity was, in fact, a major desire of Axis forces. Depictions of forces included Malays, West Africans, and Soviet. Many posters depicted soldiers from different countries, such as Australian and British, many Commonwealth countries, various occupied countries, and many Allied countries, or British and American sailors. Merchant ships were used to dramatise Lend-Lease. Resistance movements were also depicted, sometimes with Allied agents or receiving message from them.
Soviet Union Prior to the German attack on the Soviet Union, the USSR was treated with hostility, such as when a paper explained that
Tchaikovsky was a product of Tsarist, not Bolshevist, Russia. This treatment became more favourable after Germany's attack.
To occupied countries The V Campaign targeted the occupied countries, using "V" to represent the French word for "victory" and the Dutch for "freedom", and the opening of
Beethoven's
Fifth Symphony where the opening notes match the
Morse code for "V", for broadcasts. This alarmed the Germans until Goebbels conceived the idea of trying to reframe the use of a German composer as a German victory. British propaganda was circulated in occupied countries through the efforts of the underground movements.
To the United States The
British Security Coordination was created to propagandise the United States to enter the war, and presented massive amounts of propaganda which they successfully concealed as news reports, not one of them having been "rumbled" as a propaganda piece during the war. The news coverage of the
Blitzkrieg attack was produced in America in the hopes that the public opinion of supplying the UK would turn in their favour.
Careless talk Careless talk propaganda discouraged talking about sensitive material where it could be overheard by spies, showing either an Axis eavesdropper or depicting a death caused by such information leaking. After concluding that such talk was not a serious source of intelligence, and would often be dismissed as a plant, the campaign was not increased. This also was the theme of the film
The Next of Kin.
Keep mum Originating in a 1940 campaign with the catchphrase "Be like Dad, keep Mum," the best-known image from this campaign is the 1942 poster "Keep mum, she's not so dumb" by the architect and artist Gerald Lacoste. It depicts a glamorous blonde woman reclining, and officers from each branch of the Armed Forces about her talking to each other. It is implied that the officers are talking military secrets, on the (wrongful) assumption that the woman is only a "dumb blonde" and so will not pass these secrets on to the enemy. The campaign was issued in 1942 to all ranks, with this particular image intended for
messes and other places where officers met. At the end of May, ''Advertiser's Weekly'' noted that "sex appeal" had been introduced in the form of a beautiful spy, whom they insisted on "christening Olga Polovsky after the famous song." In June 1941 they further noted that, having covered public house talk, wayside conversations with strangers, and "harmless chat" with friends when on leave, the government believed they had identified "the major problem" at last. The campaign was to make a direct appeal along the lines of "
Cherchez la femme," as a reminder that "when in the company of a beautiful woman, remember that beauty may conceal brains." Service personnel seemed particularly ready to disclose their station and line of work.
Careless talk costs lives The best known images from this series are by Fougasse, depicting people giving away secrets in everyday situations (e.g. sitting on the bus, not seeing caricatures of Hitler, Goebbels, and Goering sitting behind them). ==See also==