A History of the Ministry of Information, 1939-46
SECRET
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P.C. PAPER No.34.
WAR CABINET PROPAGANDA.
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION .
REPORT NO. 8 .
APRIL 1940.
Previous Report: Paper No. W.P. (R)
(40) 117.
Functions and organisation of the Ministry .
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On the 23rd April, the Prime Minister announced in the House of Commons that in the light of further experience it had been decided that the Ministry of Information should resume the functions at present performed by the Press and Censorship Bureau. This will necessitate certain changes in the organisation of the Ministry, which are now under consideration.
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1. THE REGIONS.
On April 18th, the National Council of Labour endorsed the decision of the Parliamentary Labour Party to co-operate with the Ministry on the Home Front, making it possible to announce on the following day the agreement with the chief political parties.
200 meetings have been held in April: A new departure was a meeting for night-shift workers, held in Birmingham.
Arrangements for a Regional Organisation in N. Ireland have been agreed. A Regional Organisation is also being set up for London.
Censorship advisers to the local Press have been appointed in Newcastle, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff.
Attention has been paid to communism and other subversive activities. The Regional Press has been encouraged to attack them, literature has been distributed at their meetings and other counter-measures taken.
2. HOME AND B.E.F. BROADCASTING .
An interesting new feature was the use of two well-known comedians (“Gert and Daisy”) in short daily broadcasts for a fortnight to popularise advice from the Ministry of Food.
Three programmes dealing with broadcast propaganda were given in one week, under the title of “The War in the Ether”; this included “The Ear of Britain” (B.B.C. Monitoring Service), “The World hears London” (conditions of reception throughout the world) and “London calls the World” (outline of B.B.C. Overseas services). Other programmes dealing with the war were “Eagle under the Sea” (Polish submarine), “Convoys”, “Atlantic Patrol”, “The Rape of Austria” and “North Sea Trawlers” (in the Children’s Hour).
Programmes dealing with France grow in number and type. On April 3rd, Earl de la Warr and M. Sarraut, speaking in French, broadcast to schools. A new schools series “If you were French” has begun. Special programmes included “All France is here”, “Douce France” (French Songs) and “Au Drapeau” (The French Army).
The speech by H.M. The Queen on the 85th anniversary of the Y.W.C.A. was broadcast on April 13th.
A. R.P. talks have been recorded for use in an emergency.
A complete schedule of the B.B.C.'s Home Service propaganda broadcasts during March is attached as an appendix and shows the range of these activities.
(Note for Policy Committee: This schedule has already been circulated as P.C. No.26 and a further copy is not attached to this draft).
3. COMMUNICATIONS.
A site is being sought for a high power transmitter for daylight broadcasting to the Continent, as approved by the War Cabinet, on April 4th; the manufacture, and erection of the apparatus are in hand.
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A scheme for re-grouping the B.B.C. medium-wave transmitters so as to obtain better coverage at home was of a transmitter constructed for Lithuania, and will be completed by next November.
4. FILMS.
A three reel documentary “Men of Africa” has been taken over from the Colonial Empire Marketing Board and began a run at the Leicester Square Theatre on April 19th.
Arrangements have been made through the Admiralty for newsreel cameramen to be attached to several units of the Fleet.
5. PRODUCTION
The Anti-Gossip Campaign and campaigns for the Ministries of Health (Evacuation) and Agriculture (“Plough Now”) have been continued. Campaigns for the Ministries of Labour (Government Training Centres), Supply (Recruitment, of Munitions Workers) and Mines (Fuel Economy) are in hand.
895,000. “Re-assurance” Posters were, at the request of the Ministry of Home Security, distributed to Local Authorities in vulnerable areas. 6,000,000 copies of a “Householders Card” giving the most important A.R.P. instructions in a durable form are being printed for distribution in the same areas as the posters.
Eleven fresh artists, including Duncan Grant and Stanley Spencer have signed contracts with the Artists Advisory Committee.
The average number of items despatched per week in April was 737,500, compared with 224,120 per week in March. This figure included 62,786 prints of 746 different photographs; other. details are given in an appendix.
6. FOREIGN. (other than U.S.A).
(i) General.
The visit of M. Frossard to London at the beginning of April was of great value, enabling plans to be laid for better co-operation.
In addition to the long-range aims of emphasising the strength and determination of the Allies, their aims and the certainty of their victory, stress has been laid on the following aspects of the Scandinavian campaign:
(1) German action was premeditated, and was in train before Britain laid mines.
(2) Compliance with German wishes is no protection against aggression.
(3) Germany has been weakened strategically and economically by her crime.
(4) The ratio between German losses and naval strength is much higher than that for Britain.
(5) Security needs make it impossible to release much news.
(6) The strategic difficulties are great, yet British Forces are making progress.
(7) Germany owed much to treachery, but her difficulties in occupied areas are now beginning.
Points of special interest are:-
(1) A 24-hour service has been set up to prevent loss of time in countering German lies, and to allow telegrams summarising the British press to be sent out by Reuters in the early hours of the morning.
(2) An attempt was made to buy space in certain neutral papers to advertise neutral losses of ships not in convoy. No paper in Italy or Denmark would take the advertisements and the Press Bureau of the Dutch Government warned the Dutch Press against acceptance thereby incurring criticism and a considerable controversy arose, not without value to us. A modified form of the advertisement appeared in one Swedish paper.
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(ii) Broadcasting Overseas.
The B.B.C. now broadcasts 43 foreign news bulletins in 22 languages.
The staff necessary for a Norwegian bulletin arrived at Broadcasting House as the Germans were arriving at Oslo: a daily bulletin was at once instituted and raised quickly to three. As the main Norwegian stations are in German hands, these bulletins are the chief method of communication between the Government and people of Norway; a senior Norwegian broadcasting officer is now in London to share in the work.
Bulletins are also broadcast in Swedish and Finnish and a five-minutes news summary is given in Danish. A daily bulletin in Dutch was started at short notice on April 12th. Thanks to the co-operation of the French Government, the B.B.C's later evening bulletin in Italian, which was only faintly heard in Italy, is now relayed from Antibes, which has also broadcast several talks from the British angle.
(iii) Films Overseas.
The standard news-reels and, where necessary, special reels with commentaries in the language of the country, are now distributed regularly in:-
Rumania, Yugoslavia (dubbed in three languages), Bulgaria, Iran,
Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Spain, Portugal, Turkey and China.
(iv) Notes on particular countries
Publicity in Denmark has been undertaken by Electra House, with the guidance of the Ministry. The Press Attaché in Norway, with whom the Ministry is still in touch, has actively helped in the re-establishment of the Norsk Telegram Byra at Aalesund.
Copies of “Picture Post” are being sent to 5000 hotels in Holland, and newsagents in the smaller towns are offered British papers at special rates. A meeting arranged between Dutch correspondents in London and the supervisors of the “Protinus” gave great publicity to the German methods of warfare, and helped to induce in the Press a pro-British attitude to the Norwegian campaign.
British newspapers now reach Amsterdam on the day of issue.
The Italian Ministry of Popular Culture has shown itself less willing to receive British articles, and the public exhibition of British news-reels is confined to subjects like dog-shows. The amount of literature sent out by the Ministry has increased
Hungary under German pressure, has barred Allied news in its Press. The Press Attaché will, if possible, maintain contact by telephone with the B.B.C., so as to enable him to counter lies emanating from Germany or Italy. Progress has been made in the local broadcasting of programmes recorded in England.
At the request of the Rumanian Minister, the “Times”, “Daily Telegraph”, “News Chronicle” and “Daily Herald” have been asked to assist the supply of foreign news to papers in Rumania ; a contract between the “Times” and “Timpu” has been initiated, and two Rumanian correspondents are expected in London soon. The commercial distribution of the Films “Pygmalion.” and “Q” Planes” has been arranged in Rumania.
In Bulgaria British photographs are freely used in the Press.
(v) Effect.
Reports show that, wherever Allied propaganda has entry, it is improving in quantity, quality and effect. But entry has been made difficult in a number of countries where the governments fear or favour Germany. Indirect ways of approach are being developed, and the reception given to propaganda thus conveyed shows that the common people are clearly with us. The paramount need is for news of British military activity distributed quickly enough to. prevail over German allegations, and sufficiently, encouraging to induce the authorities to resist German pressure more boldly.
7. AMERICA
The United States, unlike many neutrals, has no fear of Germany and is therefore less concerned about British strength. Its security, however, leads it to indulge in doubts about British determination and the reality of British 108 -5-democracy. The Ministry counters this by arranging for unofficial British contributions to American papers and periodicals, (e.g. an interview with Mr. Herbert Morrison saying that only 1 per cent of British Labour opinion was anti-war, and an article in the “Atlantic Monthly” by S.K. Ratcliffe countering an anti-British article by Nehru), by supplying the British Library of Information in New York with material on every aspect of the war, and by introducing an appropriate element into the British Pavilion at the World’s Fair.
The most important of all approaches is, however, that through American newspaper correspondents and broadcasters in this country. Much work has been done in securing facilities for these people, but difficulties are sometimes caused by the nature of the news which America expects. The reasons leading the Services to deprecate press and radio “build-ups” of their fighting personnel are not appreciated in the United States, and the absence of interviews with topical war personalities is criticised.
In spite of these difficulties, the latest Gallup Public Opinion polls showed 84% hoping for and expecting a British victory as against 1% pro- German, A recent count also showed that Allied (mainly British) photographs outnumber Enemy ones by 12 to 1 in the industrial Middle West, 6 to 1 in the South and 5 to 1 in the North-West. While the initial lack of British photographs from Scandinavia may have caused a temporary set-back, there is no doubt that as the Service Departments release good action photographs, they will be avidly received.
8. THE EMPIRE .
In addition to normal material (which included five weekly bulletins and twenty different books or pamphlets) three special themes have been emphasised;
India and Burma have received some 30 feature articles a week, particularly ones on the France British Entente, and have also been sent some 7,000 copies of 6 different pamphlets.
In the colonies, efforts are being concentrated on pictorial booklets and leaflets and photographic reproductions, of which eight subjects have been despatched, and two edition of “The March of Time” have gone to four special territories. The general impression from colonial reports is that publicity is effective.
9. RELIGIONS DIVISION .
While the policy of the Division varies with the audience, four themes have been stressed:-
1. Christian civilisation is in danger.
2. The German Government is Anti-religious .
3. The Christian Churches in Britain are unanimously behind the prosecution of the war.
4. Promotion of friendship through the Churches.
Increasing attention has been paid to anti-war opinion in religious circles with a view to countering it.
With the help of firms producing insets for parish magazines, the publication of regular articles has been arranged in papers with a total circulation of over one and a half millions.
A growing correspondence with Church leaders at home and in neutral countries shows that the work of the Division is generally appreciated.