Nazi Propaganda and The Holocaust

Nazi propaganda played an important role in the Holocaust, the extermination of millions based on race, religion, and ethnicity. It successfully secured the acquiescence of the general public to the crimes committed by the Nazis. The Nazi Party used their control of the media to fuel anti-Semitic belief and to persuade Germans to support the Nazi cause throughout the Holocaust and World War II.

Although the Nazis were the largest political party in Germay, they did not win a majority of votes in the elections until 1933 (Kolb). Propaganda within Nazi Germany was therefore taken to a new and frequently perverse level and was a crucial part of Hitler’s plans (Welch). He claimed, "Propaganda tries to force a doctrine on the whole people... Propaganda works on the general public from the standpoint of an idea and makes them ripe for the victory of this idea," in his book Mein Kampf, in which he first advocated the use of propaganda to spread the ideals of the Nazi party, including racism and anti-Semitism (Welch).

Hitler and the Nazis had two main propaganda tasks. First, they hoped to ensure that none of the media or news presented in Germany contained anything hostile or damaging to the Nazi Party. Second, they planned to gradually gain the support of the German public in their ideas of anti-Semitism and genetic superiority (Herf). To ensure that everybody thought in the correct manner, the Reich Chamber of Commerce was set up in 1933 (Welch). The Reich Chamber dealt with literature, art, music, radio, film, and newspapers. Only members of the organization were allowed to produce any such media (Welch). The Nazi Party decided on the credentials required to be a member. Disobedience led to extremely severe punishments (Welch). This p...

... middle of paper ...

...se significance is thus for the first time placed within their field of vision." The Nazis believed that propaganda consisted of swaying citizens toward a central idea so powerfully that they fully accept and support it (Kolb).

Nazi propaganda was a powerful tool in implementing the Holocaust. Nazis used censorship and their control of the media to sway German citizens to their ideals and to quiet down opposition. Propaganda allowed the Nazis to successfully take control of Germany and carry out their plans while maintaining social stability within the country.

Works Cited

1. Herf, Jeffrey (2006). The Jewish Enemy: Nazi Ideology and Propaganda During World War II and the Holocaust. Harvard University Press.

2. Kolb, Eberhard (2005) [1984]. The Weimar Republic. London; New York: Routledge.

3. Welch, David (1993). The Third Reich: Politics and Propaganda. Routledge.