Wartime propaganda has always been an effective tool for warring nations to mobilize the country for war. Many nations use wartime propaganda because it has the ability to persuade, influence and convince citizens, especially during a time of distress, fear, and desperation. The United States, for example, reaped great benefits by using wartime propaganda in World War II. It promoted the sale of war bonds, boosted civic engagement, and fostered public morale. Although American wartime propaganda during World War II was extremely biased and racist, it would have been arguably much harder for the United States to defeat Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany if they did not use propaganda. The general concept of propaganda, information or news intentionally …show more content…
For instance, propaganda was used to encourage citizens to support the Revolutionary War and to spew hate toward Black Americans during the Civil War era. Propaganda was also used in World War I to encourage citizens to enlist in the United States Army. However, in spite of its wide and varied use throughout American history, the United States government was initially reluctant to engage in wartime propaganda when they entered the war. Not only did the social and political changes of the Roaring Twenties made the public more critical of their image, but the government also witnessed the overwhelming power that Nazi Germany's centralized information bureau had gained, fearing about how their own citizens would respond. Eventually, the media sector pressured the government to take action. In June 1942, the United States Office of War Information, along with smaller agencies, was established, with the goal of delivering propaganda anywhere they could. The American government claimed that propaganda in World War II would be a mere way of relaying information to the public. However, time would tell that propaganda did much more than providing