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Writer's pictureLaks

The History of Propaganda (2)

Global conflict


It wasn't until WW1 where we saw the first large scale of formalized propaganda production, starting with the emperor Wilhelm of Germany.


Wilhelm immediately established an unofficial propaganda machine with the creation of the central office for foreign services with the rise of WW1. This included duties such as distributing propaganda to neutral countries.


After war broke out, Britain immediately severed under sea cables that were connecting Germany to the rest of the world as Germans were using a powerful wireless transmitter to broadcast German - biased news to other nations.

Other methods of broadcasting propaganda was their use of mobile cinemas that were sent to troops on the front line to watch.


Though, Propaganda throughout WW1 was frequently based on exaggeration and included a lot of misinformation.


An example of this being Edith cavell, who was executed after using her position as a Nurse to help soldiers escape from behind German lines. This story was used to exaggerate German atrocities and got twisted to create false propaganda.


The British Propaganda machine was so effective that it was even stated many times that it was even what persuaded the United States to enter war in the first place.

The Machine was so effective that after the war, Hitler studied the british propaganda, stating it 's 'Brilliance and effectiveness' this would lead Hitler to enlist Joseph Goebbels in the future to help create some of the most effective propaganda in WW2, Justifying methods such as eugenics programs, extermination of target populations and other atrocities such as glorifying racism and discrimination. Allies counteracted with propaganda that vilified the Germans.


It wasn't until the true tales of Nazi Germany came to realisation that people started to see the power that propaganda held, and due to this, propaganda has developed a negative meaning.





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