Images and propaganda texts about the Soviet Union in Die Wehrmacht magazine (Berlin, 1939-1944)

ABSTRACT

This article analyzes how the editorial section of the magazine Die Wehrmacht (the official publication of the German Armed Forces) changed significantly over the course of World War II. At first favorable to Russia, it soon began to vehemently attack the Soviet Union (USSR), even though it recognized the military superiority of the USSR after the German Army’s defeat at Stalingrad. The publication began in 1936, and thereafter it became an editorial success in Nazi Germany and in some occupied countries, reaching a print run of almost two million copies in 1944. This article explores the publication’s materiality, the role of the so-called Propaganda Companies (Propagandakompanien) that produced propagandistic material for the magazine, and the government agencies responsible for the publication, such as the Wehrmacht Propaganda Department and the Ministry of Propaganda and Popular Enlightenment.

Keywords:
Die Wehrmacht; propaganda companies; Nazi propaganda; illustrated press; Second World War