text assets/images/thmbs/intro.gif Preparing for War

Never before or since have Americans participated in a war effort of World War II's proportions. All aspects of American society were mobilized in order to cope with the strain of fighting against two powerful enemies on opposite sides of the world.

The media was no exception. The war filled newspaper headlines even before the U.S. entry into the conflict. But for the first time, newspapers weren't alone in carrying coverage of the war. Radio, which had been in development since the turn of the century, had blossomed since the 1920s; by 1940, nearly 90% of all American households had a radio set. Radio, along with newsreels

]]> shown at movie theaters, took over the newspaper's role as primary source of information for most Americans. Papers responded by increasingly focusing on local concerns and in-depth reporting, both impractical on the radio.

The Office of Censorship

The widespread access to news presented a major security problem for the war effort: any military secrets accidentally leaked in the papers or on the radio would be instantly and easily available to America's enemies. To counter this, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the U.S. Office of Censorship. He appointed Bryon Price, executive news editor of the Associated Press, to lead the censorship program. Price only

]]> took the job on the condition that censorship be voluntary. He was convinced that asking journalists to help win the war would be more effective than telling them to be quiet or they'd go to jail, as was the general strategy during World War I. Price was right; self-censorship was very successful.

Winning the War

The media didn't just keep secrets for the government; it also directly supported the war effort through the contribution of advertising space, often unpaid, for the various war bond, victory stamp, and salvage campaigns. Overall, the media remained proud of its efforts to win the war.

Click on the thumbnails above to view the materials for this section.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1937-fdr.gif FDR delivered a speech in early October of 1937 in Chicago calling for international action against aggressive nations. The State Archives has a copy of this recording, but it is currently inaccessible; please see the digital version linked above from the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs website.

Microphones for the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), and for WGN, a Chicago radio station, are prominently featured in this photograph, which was taken during this speech. FDR used the radio extensively throughout his four terms as president, most famously for his "Fireside Chats" beginning during the Great Depression.

]]> assets/images/1937-fdr.jpg Speech MP3 and transcript (new window, offsite link)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. The Archives is not affiliated with the Miller Center of Public Affairs and is not responsible for its content. Photograph: "FDR Announces His Opposition to Facsism," October 1937. In Alsop, Joseph, A Centennial Remembrance: FDR (New York: Viking Press, 1982), 169. General Negative Collection, North Carolina State Archives. Call Number N.85.8.175.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1941-spindale.gif The Spindale Sun was a small weekly newspaper barely six months old when it faced the biggest story of its existence: the United States's entry into World War II. This headline announces the U.S. declaration of war on the Axis powers after Pearl Harbor.

Radio was widespread by 1941, so newspapers were no longer the primary source of information for most Americans. By the time news made the print headlines, many people had already heard the story on the radio. As a result, weekly newspapers shifted from Americans' primary source for all information to a source of very localized information. Notice how even this headline leads straight into a local spin in the first story.

]]> assets/images/1941-spindale.jpg full-size (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. The Spindale Sun. 1941. December 11. [P.C. 153.26] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1941-wilmstar-1219.gif The Wilmington Morning Star was one of the largest and oldest daily papers in North Carolina during World War II. It is of special interest to any student of N.C. media, as the North Carolina Newspaper Project has nearly every issue of the paper since 1867 available on microfilm.

Newspaper editorial pages were almost unanimous in their support of the war effort, though support of individual politicians was nowhere near as strong. Editorial pages contributed free advertising to the war effort; click on the full-size link above to read the columns on this page supporting the waste-paper salvage drive and wartime censorship of the media.

]]> assets/images/1941-wilmstar-1219.jpg entire page (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. Editorials. 1941. The Morning Star (Wilmington, NC). December 19. North Carolina Newspaper Project, State Library of North Carolina & North Carolina State Archives. Microfilm reel number WmgSTARd.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1942-dukepressdinner.gif This is the cover of the program for the Annual Press Institute Dinner in January 1942. Press associations had been active in North Carolina at least since the N.C. Press Association was founded in 1873. The press association increased papers' power to get favorable legislation or advertisers' attention.

This is perhaps one of the most straightforward represenations of how the media saw itself during World War II. The delivery boy's pose echoes that of the Statue of Liberty, the protector of freedom, and the media claimed the same role. To Americans, the war was about protecting everything the nation stood for, and the media eagerly helped win the war.

]]> assets/images/1942-dukepressdinner.jpg full-size (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. Cover Illustration, Program for the Annual Press Institute Dinner at Duke University. January 16, 1942. [P.C. 153.5] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1942-censorshipcode.gif This is the introduction to the Second Edition of the Code of Wartime Practices for American Broadcasters, issued by the Office of Censorship.

Slightly different codes were issued for the print media and broadcasters, reflecting the differences in the two mediums. The broadcasting code included restrictions on game shows and other informal situations in which the identity of participants could not be verified. This was to prevent the enemy from using the media to transmit coded messages. Both codes emphasized that the purpose of censorship was to prevent the enemy from obtaining military secrets, not to hide news from the public.

]]> assets/images/1942-censorshipcode.jpg entire document (new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. U.S. Government Office of Censorship. "Code of Wartime Practices: For American Broadcasters" (Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 1942). June 15, 1942 ed. [P.C. 153.16?] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1943-tarborosoutherner.gif This is part of the front page of the Tarboro Daily Southerner, a small local paper. Newspapers made heavy use of their main advantage over the radio: their ability to use photographs.

Local newspapers like the Southerner typically featured war news of interest on the front page and devoted the rest of their space to advertising, local concerns, and other features, such as comics. Editorial policies varied widely among newspapers, depending partially on their size and location but mostly on the editor himself. Supporting the war effort was the primary theme of editorials. This issue carries an editorial in favor of expanding the Japanese internment program.

]]> assets/images/1943-tarborosoutherner.jpg full issue (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. The Daily Southerner (Tarboro, NC). 1940. May 12. North Carolina Newspaper Project, State Library of North Carolina & North Carolina State Archives. Microfilm reel number TarDS23.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1943-censorship-atomic.gif One of the most dangerous and closely guarded secrets the Office of Censorship had to protect was the atomic bomb research being conducted in New Mexico. Director of Censorship Bryon Price sent this confidential notice out to the media asking that they not publish any details they might discover about the nuclear program. Journalists largely obeyed the request, and the world was shocked by the destructive power of America's new weapon.

Censorship did not stop journalists from pursuing new leads or information. In all likelihood, this notice was sent out because reporters had uncovered some of the information censored here.

]]> assets/images/1943-censorship-atomic.jpg full-size (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. Price, Bryon to Editors and Broadcasters, June 28, 1943. [P.C. 153.16?] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> video assets/images/thmbs/1943-civildefense-2.gif This film was produced circa 1943 to explain the air raid warning system put in place by the U.S. Office of Civilian Defense, which was responsible for planning and implementing civil defense procedures. This clip describes the four signals the system used to communicate threats to local officials and air raid wardens, who would then take appropriate measures to prepare the public.

The film industry participated in the nationwide war effort in the same way newspapers and radio stations did: by using its medium to facilitate communication between the government and the public. This film was shown in movie theaters before the feature film, a common way of sharing news with the public before the advent of television.

]]> assets/video/1943-civildefense-2 This video clip is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. [Possible creator: the Indiana State Defense Council, Wilding Picture Productions, and Indiana Bell Telephone Co.] Ready On The Home Front. Circa 1943. [V.T.39] Video Collection, Non-Textual Materials Unit, North Carolina State Archives.

]]> video assets/images/thmbs/1943-civildefense-3.gif This is another clip from the circa 1943 civil defense film produced to educate the public about the air raid warning procedure created by the Office of Civilian Defense. In this clip, a family practices putting out an incendiary bomb fire in their attic. Although air raids on suburban America were unlikely, having a defense structure in place calmed the public after Pearl Harbor.

This clip continued the central theme of individual responsibility for the war effort found in most government publications during the war. One explanation for the media's willingness to play a large and often uncomfortable role in the war effort may be that journalists simply listened to the call they helped spread and did their part to win the war.

]]> assets/video/1943-civildefense-3 This video clip is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. [Possible creator: the Indiana State Defense Council, Wilding Picture Productions, and Indiana Bell Telephone Co.] Ready On The Home Front. Circa 1943. [V.T.39] Video Collection, Non-Textual Materials Unit, North Carolina State Archives.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1944-013-cartoon.gif Despite the extensive war coverage in the media, the war was not the only story of the early 1940s, and the media did not forget that. In this 1944 editorial cartoon from the Greensboro Patriot, the artist comments on the domestic pressures facing Congress as the November elections loomed in the background.

During World War I, the Sedition Act of 1918 allowed the government to imprison editors for "sedition," which in practice meant printing anything criticizing the government. The act was repealed in 1921 and despite the creation of the Office of Censorship in 1941, the media didn't suffer major restrictions on freedom of the press.

]]> assets/images/1944-013-cartoon.gif full-size (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. "Nightmare on the Potomac." 1944. The Greensboro Patriot (Greensboro, NC). January 13. North Carolina Newspaper Project, State Library of North Carolina & North Carolina State Archives. Microfilm reel number GbPA91.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1945-article.gif This May 1945 column by Paul Mallon, writing for the King Features Syndicate, was killed, or censored, by the U.S. Office of Censorship. It has been included in this exhibit, along with the telegram announcing its censorship and the writer's response to being censored, to demonstrate exactly how the Office of Censorship operated in a real situation.

The article concerned the decision to continue "lend-lease" military equipment aid to Russia after the defeat of Germany, even though Russia had not yet declared war on Japan. The article was probably censored for a statement that the president expected a Russian declaration of war on Japan.

]]> assets/images/1945-censorship-m-article.jpg entire article (new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. Mallon, Paul. "News Behind The News." May 22, 1945. (Unpublished; distributed by King Features Syndicate.) [P.C. 153.16?] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1945-telegram.gif The U.S. Office of Censorship sent this telegram to Clarence Griffin, editor of the Forest City Courier, "requesting" that he not run the syndicated Paul Mallon column. It is an example of how the U.S. Office of Censorship communicated with editors.

During World War II, censorship of domestic media - broadcasting and print - was voluntary. Griffin could have chosen to run the article anyway, but doing so would invite questions about his patriotism and could substantially hurt his paper's circulation. Editors largely supported the war effort, but censorship involving seemingly political issues like diplomatic relations with Russia was probably very unpopular.

]]> assets/images/1945-censorship-m-telegram.jpg full-size (opens in new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. King Features Syndicate to Clarence W. Griffin, Managing Editor Courier, telegram, May 22, 1945. [P.C. 153.16?] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]> image assets/images/thmbs/1945-response.gif Mallon wrote this letter in response to the censorship of his May 22 article. At his request, his editor sent it out to subscribing newspapers of the syndicate.

This incident illustrates how the U.S. Office of Censorship operated. It issued several editions of a "Code of Wartime Practices" as a guide for editors and broadcasters, and if the Office identified a breach of that code, it requested that publishers not run the story. It was careful to "request" censorship instead of ordering it, a policy that worked because it respected journalists and their freedom of the press. Journalists nearly always, but often grudgingly, complied with these requests.

]]> assets/images/1945-censorship-m-response.jpg entire document (new window)]]> This image is provided courtesy of the NORTH CAROLINA STATE ARCHIVES and may be protected by copyright law, Title 17 US Code. The user must obtain the proper release forms prior to reproducing this material. Mallon, Paul and Ward Greene, King Features Syndicate, to all Papers Recieving the Paul Mallon Column. [P.C. 153.16?] Clarence W. Griffin Papers, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

]]>