SOVIETS COPY REICH

Evening Star, Issue 23175, 26 January 1939, Page 10

SOVIETS COPY REICH

SYSTEM OF PROPAGANDA A Ministry of Propaganda organised on similar lines to that in Germanyhas been added to the list of Cabinet posts in the Soviet Government, and Joseph Stalin's right-hand man. A. A. Zdanoff, has been appointed the first Soviet Commissar of Propaganda (writes the Moscow correspondent of the ' Christian Science Monitor '). This powerful Bolshevik leader succeeded Sergei Kiroff as chief of Leningrad district four years ago after the latter's assassination. He has won his way to one of the foremost positions in 'the Soviet hierarchy by directing a series of ruthless " purges " in Leningrad district, and the removal of several hundred thousand men and women to the Soviet East.

SUPERVISION OF INTERNATIONAL. It is not yet clear just what significance the reorganisation of Soviet propaganda machinery possesses. Mr Zdanoff has been selected to transfer direction of the entire propaganda machinery from the ruling Communist Party to the Soviet Government, and at the same time he Las taken over, without any publicity, supervision of the Communist International. Russia’s Bolshevik rulers thus combine for the first time since the passing of Lenin the direction of propaganda both at home and abroad in the hands of a single man. The Communist creed in Russia has been worked out, ami is modified frequently by the higher organs of the ruling Communist Party, and that party assumes the right to suppress, by force, if necessary, any opposition to its accepted body of beliefs, and also assumes the duty of converting to its creed every man, woman, and child in the Soviet Union, and as many as possible in other countries. WILL UNIFY PROPAGANDA. An elaborate organisation has been worked out for this purpose during the 21 years since the Bolshevik Party came to power in Russia. The party itself has employed about 50,000 fulltime “ agitators ” in Russia, and has been able to reach all Soviet citizens through its absolute control of all Soviet schools, kindergartens, clubs, radio staions, newspapers, periodicals of all kinds, and publishing houses. Many of these institutions, however, have been directed by the Soviet Government, not by the party; although the latter also controls the Government. There have been occasional conflicts and contradictions between the organs of party and Government. It will now apparently be Mr Zdanoff’s task to unify all organs of propaganda, to eliminate repetition of effort so far as possible, and to increase the smoothness of the propaganda machinery. , Presumably he will undertake this task also for the Communist International, which directs the propaganda work of Communist Parties in other countries. i