ANGER CAMPAIGN

THE TERMS OF REFERENCE in the preparation of the suggestions which follow were for recommendation for a campaign which will:

heighten the intensity of the personal anger felt by the individual British citizen against the German people and Germany - as a factor in increasing war effort and in preparing the British public for every emergency.

THESE RECOMMENDATIONS are the result of a careful study of this problem in all its aspects and are set out in the following arrangement:

1. PRELIMINARY STUDY of the present state of public anger from which it is suggested that the best way of achieving the objective is intensively to cultivate all the various sources of anger and resentment at present operating in the following two ways:

(a) Hammering at a MAIN THEME for the public as a whole - this theme being “Resentment at the unchanging character of the German as the perpetual Trouble-making BULLY O F THE WORLD”.

(b) Cultivation of this and allied themes applied to individual classes and groups in the community - each calculated to touch “where the shoe pinches most”.

2. DETAILED RECOMMENDATIONS AND MEDIA in which are outlined the principal lines of attack and suggestions for their application through the various channels for the formation of public opinion, these being dealt with one by one.

IMPORTANT

A good deal of the war-anger felt by the British people is not at present directed consciously against the Germans. It is our task to focus all war-anger as directly as possible against the Germans and in such a way that it appears to come quite spontaneously from the people themselves. In other words, we want the people to feel that it is their anger which is growing of its own accord .

It is therefore regarded as essential that the campaign should be planned and run with the greatest degree of secrecy possible. It should open through channels which are apparently entirely unofficial and non-inspired. These range from the treatment of news stories in the press to the most subtle methods of securing the desired public attitude of mind.

It must be remembered all through that in order to stimulate real anger amongst the easy-going British people, the Ministry will have to make full use of all its powers. Everything likely to affect public opinion will have to be influenced but without the public knowing it is influenced. As soon as the public is unconsciously stimulated through apparently non-official channels the more obvious official propaganda methods can effectively be used. On no account should the initial stimulation be attempted by means of a few advertisements, leaflets or posters. Once anger has been stirred the more direct methods will be infinitely more effective. The idea will be already “sold”. The poster, the press advertisement, the leaflet which expresses an idea already held subconsciously by the public is a most potent weapon.

The DETAILED RECOMMENDATIONS therefore include not only themes, media and specific suggestions but recommendations on the special organisation which, in several instances, will have to be set up to make these efforts fully effective.