GOEBBELS FACES CREDITORS

Timaru Herald, Volume CL, Issue 22063, 9 September 1941, Page 6

GOEBBELS FACES CREDITORS

Lies Are Like Cheques

Confession Of Failure

LONDON, August 25.

Lies are like cheques. The day comes when they are presented for payment and loss of credit follows immediately upon failure to meet demand. Since the war began—and especially since the outbreak of the Russian campaign —the Germans have indulged in such an orgy of lying that now they fail to carry conviction even with their truthful statements. Further, when no claims are made they are thought to be concealing difficulties which they dare not reveal.

Germany’s loss of credit is Britain's gain. Having lost faith in their own leaders, people in Germany are turning more and more to foreign sources for trustworthy information of the course of the war. Goebbels himself has admitted the failure of German news reporting to carry conviction. In an article in “Das Reich” of August 15, he says: "Does a person who listens to the 8.8. C. expect us to issue for his sake every day denials of the flood of foreign lies? Does he expect us to state it is not true that our plans for the Eastern campaign have been upset, and that on the contrary everything is proceeding according to plan?” The same article contains an even more damaging admission of the effects which foreign broadcasters—and particularly the B.B.C.—are having on German listeners. “In order to win the war England will endeavour to make German people distrust their Fuhrer and if they were to succeed they would win the war. Therefore, we have introduced the death penalty for listening to the 8.8. C.” New Technique Goebbels’s credit is exhausted abroad as well as at home. To Latin-American countries where Germany’s propagandists are fighting a losing battle, their newest gambit is a bitter confession of failure. Drop; Ing all efforts to win over Latin-America' to the Axis side, he has fallen back on an attempt to prove to Latin-American countries that there .iS nothing to choose between Germany and the Democracies, between the ambitions of a Hitler and the greed of a Roosevelt. Here are some examples of the new technique. It will be noticed that item by item the messages attribute to U.S.A, the very aspirations for which the Nazis them-

selves have been condemned by American opinion.

"American imperialism has gone far beyond all theories of vital living space and is talking of a mission to guide the world.” (German Trans-ocean news cable, July 12, 1941). “By the dispatch of U.S.A, officers to Bolivia,, the U.S.A, takes the first step to taking over the whole of Bolivia’s affair’s.” (German broadcast in Spanish to Latin-America, July 31, 1941).

“Roosevelt’s aim is said to be absolute domination of the South American continent and papers draw attention to the President’s lust for personal 1 power." (German broadcast in Spanish to Latin-America, August 9, 1941).

“The domination of Canada, LatinAmerica and the Anglo-Saxon world are but stepping-stones on the Yankee path to world empire.” (German broadcast in all languages, May 29, 1941).

The reasons for this new gambit are threefold and each is purely defensive: (a) It is hoped that Latin-American listeners will receive the impression that it does not matter which side wins;

(b) It is hoped that listeners will become so accustomed to repeated charges that these will cease to have any meaning when applied by Democratic spokesmen: to th; Nazis; (c) It is hoped that, knowing the allegations to be untrue of the U.S.A., the minds of listeners will become so confused that they will cease to believe them of the Nazis. Confession of Failure

Here is a confession of failure. The offensive aim of German propaganda has been abandoned in favour of a purely defensive technique. The admissions are as telling as if Goering were suddenly to withdraw the bombing arm of the Luftwaffe and to concentrate on anti-aircraft defence.

In one area, West Norway, Goebbels already is bankrupt. The Reich Commissioner Terboven’s decree of August 1, ordering the confiscation of all radio-sets means that Germany has denounced her own best propaganda weapon rather than leave the British in the field.. Frustration is implicit in every line of this decree. Although it may limit the direct audience of the 8.8. C., it restricts Germany’s audience also. Further ' it is encouraging Britain’s allies to hide radio-sets and to organise the secret spreading of news.

“The surrender of wireless sets has not come up to the expectations of the authorities. Following the prohibition, innumerable stencilled and hectographed news sheets are being circulated from hand to hand. Although the news is somewhat belated the authorities are powerless to prevent its circulation.” (“Svenska Dagbladet,” Stockholm, August 17, 1941). When Hitler wrote in “Mein Kampf” of the power of the great lie he was not thinking of long-term policy. Like his military blitzkrieg, his propaganda technique was based on short-term strategy aimed at swift grandiose results.

British news reporting and propaganda in contrast aimed at building confidence by sticking to the truth. This policy, though less arresting at first, tells in the end. In this battle of the radio, Germany has already made her first strategic retreat.