Show I r l Jesuits Justify Expenses Of I-Of Of Overseas Propaganda t js IS IS H Has s Employed Elaborate Means to Get Its Views Across to Neutral Nations U. U S. S 1 Must Use Press and Radio BAUKHAGE News By Analyst t and d Commentator I U II Service Union Trust Building iI i- 1 Washington D. D C. C he The other day Elmer Davis head heade the e Office of War Information i old Id a press conference He opened 7 with the remark that we were I essing an Uncle Toms Tom's Cabin the Simon Legree I didn't t t the significance of the remark Davis explained that v Tabor who charged Mr Tyis i is with using the Office of War to distribute for a fourth term had been ind ind ind in- in d d to share the conference but other duties the purpose of the eting cling was to show how the mon- mon for the publication of propaganda s being spent and a good deal of e ie e was taken up on m comparative ts is of British American and Axis h efforts If the OWl carols cars car car- Js s out present plans it will be J finding the 45 millions Old at t rate of P pIe le dollars dollars by the end of the year of tain with its separate ministry o 1 information is spending much f fo re than we are Germany are Germany proby y y four or five times as much e fats fat's ats at's a rough estimate But the theu oy u ores ures didn't interest me so much I. I ltd Il S Ill i-I'll Ill I'll tell you why I had come the meeting a little early and d d' d been studying th the array of lite lit- lit two tiro tables tables- arranged ture-arranged e arranged on s A 1 American and the Axis prop a- a material There were hand- hand 11 l fie publications like the German Signal Rome Berlin kyo and Japans Japan's Nippon ignal costs 75 cents p. p copy to toN N Ml duce the duce the art work in all of them alt make Esquire and Fortee Foren Forr For r tee fe en envious There were tiny these these were Americans American American- i s h could slip into your hat band ie e OWls OWIs s masterpiece is Victory ich ich was the target of al attack attack it it isn't so ba bad in co com com- rison with the expensive Axis I but it costs only 35 cents I j produce Shree ree things struck me as a ret ret re- re t of the conference first if there fa f n even chance of obtaining the thelEY thery ry lEY u milts Fults expected the investment is L l worth quibbling about second J ice Davis admits that material into the Roosevelt sketch which es uld not have and wont won't again we 1 Cher ought to take Davis' Davis judg- judg it eri t or else fire him Thirdly the hasn't had a chance to know 01 nat at the propaganda is all about the criticism of one phase of it distorts the general picture aI the function purpose an and d value Jj the VI O effort tt JI the first place these publicans ns as s under cc consideration are not c LD our troops abroad or our people home home the though I believe they ip lP I ht to be gh given some circulation e simply so that their function r YOU at least when it is i with the confidential nae na- na e of some some of the me means ns of distri- distri u la n. n K iI lOn n in enemy countries Ix Jt is accepted as the duty and andt Fiction t tion n for one political party to fall J U it can to discredit the leaders ll the other party party according according to the theTa theof Ta Issues res of the game of politics politics but but g Javis quoted the Baltimore Sun 4 have to exploit your MI n People mean a lot more than lie re ideas when you are trying to like lite an impression Roosevelt can played up as a powerful symbol people abroad without affecting political situation at home That il's ils S' S done effectively in the case of drow Wilson in the last war his lure ture was worshiped all over Eue Eu- Eu e as the symbol of the leader of Nation coming to liberate them t k when he came home he couldn't 1 t his program to the American 0 Mple l l le M d Allied Cause ers jolt tried to find out what the ob- ob tive t of the VI O was whether it iti i it ild Ud show v any results S. S ra purpose one is counter We Ve WeW 8 W yaw what German propaganda has lo re first in softening countries jt ut to be invaded second to keep Urals leaning Nazi OWl its to fight fire with fire ic e C second purpose is the same I Ithe the the first and more of it not it-not not rely rely to nullify enemy effort but 1 1 the prospect the idea that American Amer Amer- 4 ican can win and is winning the war warI warl l that American victory will be a w hater selfish advantage to thed the I d than a Nazi victory would M dt tit How about results That is pretty hard to reduce to statistics cs or even concrete statements We know some Japs have surrendered with our propaganda leaflets in their hands We Ve know that leaflets dropped over occupied countries or pamphlets smuggled in have started people talking OWl has reports to this ef ef- ef- ef They say that this means that the idea has been spread that America America America Amer Amer- ica is in touch with the people within the occupied territory We know that some of these pamphlets pamphlets pamphlets pam pam- have been or copied copied copied cop cop- in others and given further dis dis- dis- dis It was stated that these copies or excerpts from them have even been circulated in prison camps We Ve know that from four to six clandestine newspapers are made up chiefly from Allied propaganda material Of course by no means all of the OWl propaganda is spread through publications In fact the radio broadcasts represent the greater part of the expenditure Vl O is confident that this radio propaganda is not wasted as has been charged although it is admitted admitted admitted admit admit- ted that the listening audience is being cut down as wave short-wave sets are seized or wear out and the depreciation depreciation depreciation de de- de- de is heavy On the other hand it is known that the radio broadcasts are repeated repeated repeated-by by word of mouth and in clandestine pamphlets pamphlets pamphlets pam pam- and newspapers The chief evidence that propaganda da is reaching into Germany comes from two sources first the speeches of Goebbels and other German leaders leaders leaders lead lead- ers who warn against black listening listen listen- ing warning ing-warning warning not to believe the foreign foreign foreign for for- eign propaganda propaganda and and second the records of trials of persons arrested arrest arrest- ed for this black listening I Effective in Turkey It is stated that American propaganda propaganda propaganda ganda has been effective in Turkey because Turks believe it whereas they have caught the Axis in too many lies Since publications printed print print- ed in Turkish are still forbidden to tobe tobe tobe be sent into Turkey the printing has to be done there or the material sent in in French or English In Spain it is said that in spite of strong handicaps that handicaps that is the power of the party which is openly pro Axis pro pro- pro Axis American is-American propaganda propaganda propaganda prop prop- has curtailed this power has swung many people from froma a pro- pro Axis to a pro-Ally pro attitude The persecution of the Catholic church in Germany has been used effectively in Spain Of course this isn't the whole story of propaganda All AIl is fair inlove inlove in inlove love and war and some pretty precarious precarious precarious pre pre- carious tight-rope tight walking is sometimes sometimes sometimes some some- times done witness done witness democracy's tete-a-tete tete with Darlan which history history history his his- tory will probably disclose was less lessa a desertion of democratic political methods than waiving of the Queens- Queens berry rules of gallant combat We Ve cant can't expect the Allies to show their hands to the enemy and there is no use disturbing the squeamish by byr r revealing the possible although not entirely immaculate condition which might arise from grappling with an especially noisome noisome- e enemy emy- emy What Davis did not go into at this meeting was the question of enemy propaganda directed toward us That is a very delicate matter and sometimes governments are willing willingto to give the enemy credit for the circulation circulation circulation cir cir- cir cir- of certain sentiments expressed expressed expressed ex ex- pressed by people who are just mad madat at their own public servants and andare andare andare are exercising the inherent right of grousing As I said before I am much more interested in whether the propaganda da job we are doing is effective As to getting in puffs for the party in power that is up to the party out of power to stop but one of the inescapable advantages of being an anin anin anin in in wartime is that you can squelch some opposition on the ground of patriotism On the other hand there was never an administration administration administration adminis adminis- I yet that wasn't thrown out after a war so there is some compensation com com- furthermore furthermore the party of the opposition doesn't share the blame for the mistakes Now that Governor Bricker has announced that tha t he expects the Ohio delegation will support him as a favorite son candidate for the presidency presidency presidency dency politics will be raising its lovely head head- headin in every headline |