Over the past century, propaganda has had a widespread growth due to advancements in technology, however there have been significant changes in delivery methods. I will analyze WWII era propaganda, specifically the Walt Disney generated media. I set out to research World War II propaganda and the role Disney played in creating animated films to encourage Americans to support the war. These films prompted Americans to pay their taxes and assist in whatever way they could in order to support the war. This is worth researching for several reasons, the propaganda films Disney created were so influential and therefore are important to research the cause of their success as well as the cause of their disappearance. In addition, these short videos should be studied and understood with historical context due to all the racial stereotypes that are displayed in the propaganda.
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the U.S. took action and attempted to get every American on board. Neal Gabler in “Disney Joins Up,” explains how the government recruited Walt Disney to animate films that would serve a specific purpose, to encourage the war. The government needed an active supporter that already had a large fan base and Disney fit the requirements. According to Gabler, Disney’s involvement began because the company had been undergoing financial
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This was the first film Disney created that had a grim, dark theme. The cartoon follows Hans, a young German boy, who is brainwashed to believe in Nazi ideology and therefore his ability to value human life decreases. This cartoon shows how innocent children are being raised to hate and brainwashed to be monsters. Audiences are shown how Germany thinks of their citizens as disposable. This film succeeds by showing how Germany destroys families. All these films were successful but it is very rare to see these films in current