During the 1936 Olympics, Hitler’s propaganda was at its finest, and it denoted to be an engine in propelling international influence for the Nazi regime. The International Olympic Committee in 1931 agreed that Berlin would host the Summer Olympics in 1936. Thus, the choice signified the reunite of Germany to the world community after it was isolated in the aftermath of the First World War. Hitler was the Nazi party leader, and he overturns the country’s fragile democracy into a one-party dictatorship. He thus managed to keep away all the political opponents. The need for Germany to control all aspects of life was also manifested in sports. In 1936 Olympics, Germany created an imaginary which served to promote a friendly nature and thus influence the visitors. Hitler used the sporting event as a platform to shape its image in the international eyes. He managed to use propaganda to manipulate the minds of the visitors and cultivated an adoration in the masses.
How Hitler used propaganda in Olympics 1936
The propaganda that Hitler used portrayed Germany as a strong, friendly and a united nation under the Nazi rule. The Olympics also concealed Hitler’s target on persecuting other ethnic groups such as the Jews and Roma. Moreover, Hitler masked the growing militarism and racism which were rampant in Germany and thus legitimized his regime in the eyes of the world. Notably, the dazzling spectacle coupled with the hospitality nature that was provided in Berlin portrayed to the athletes and other foreign spectators that Germany was welcoming nation. Niewyk states that the strategy marked an “absolute high point of respect in Germany and amongst the people,” and they allowed Adolf to portray himself as a good leader (Niewyk 45). Hitler and his Nazi regime used propaganda in 1936 to paint a positive image in the eyes of the visitors.
In August 1936, Hitler and his regime spent two weeks camouflaging its racism and militaristic nature while hosting the Summer Olympics. Hitler used propaganda to hide his antisemitic agenda and his plan for territorial expansion and brutal rule. Hitler managed to fool journalists and the foreigners that Germany was racial tolerant and a peaceful place to be. However, Germany was engrossed in expansionist policies, persecution of the Jews which accelerated the development of the Second World War and later the holocaust. According to Young “Behind the public façade of lavish and feel-good atmosphere, a sinister narrative” of fascist dictatorship lied beneath the surface of Berlin (Young 5). Germany was in the process to plot another war and spurred tensions, and no one would tell about this about the good treatment in the Olympics.
Hitler used Jewish athletes in the Olympics as a gesture to create a positive reputation to the world. He wanted to show that Germany accepted all races and that they lived in harmony. Thus, Hitler purposed to disapprove the notion that Germany was a highly racist nation, especially to the Jews. People from all corners of the world understood that Hitler was racists and persecuted other ethnic groups. Therefore, Hitler was brilliant to incorporate the Jewish Athletes to sway the public and place Germany on an international scale of good nations. One Jewish athlete that was a crucial figure in rubberstamping Hitler’s mission was Helene Mayer. He represented Germany in the Olympics despite her Jewish origin. Mayer won a silver medal in the women's fence, and thus gave the Nazi regime a positive reputation. Hitler was significantly impressed. Mayer among other Jews were allowed to participate in the Olympics despite a history of brutal sufferings and racial sentiments in the hands of the Germanys. The authorities also approved five Hungarians, and they won various medals. For this reason, the world believed that Nazi persecution of the Jews were only allegations that were driven to destroy Hitler. The Jewish athlete’s imagery established a reputable relationship between Germany and other nations.
Hitler wrote that "Propaganda tries to force a doctrine on the whole people... Propaganda works on the general public from the standpoint of an idea and makes them ripe for the victory of this idea" (Holmes 34). He strongly advocated us for propaganda in spreading National Socialism including anti-Bolshevism, anti-Semitism, and racism. Hitler establishes “Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda” after Nazi was seized power in 1933 (Holmes 37). The organization was head by Joseph Goebbels. As such, real and passive discrimination against the other ethnic races was evident and gained acceptance through propaganda. The propaganda sought to elicit political loyalties and created a culture of race consciousness among the ethnic German populations.
During Olympics, most of the anti-Jewish racial sentiments were temporarily removed from the newspapers. Hitler ordered all the magazines that to promoted racial policies to be tone into pieces thus cover any trace of racism. Thus, Hitler and his Nazi regime hid their violent deeds and racist characters. The directives from the Propaganda ministry managed to exploit the foreign spectators in the Olympics. Adolf Hitler skillfully promoted a positive Germany in colorful posture and spread magazines which only talked positive elements. Thus, the action symbolized that the Nazi was a nation that cultivated peace. Germany's hospitality was shaped, and the fact that it won medals from athletes of different ethnicity sailed Hitler’s objective. Most accounts in the newspaper echoed the New York Times despite the Americans having been key enemies. Thus people understood the diplomatic nature endured at all times.
The oppressive and violent atmosphere was transformed and the propaganda fashioned in a serene county. Indeed, one of the significant reason which made Germans appear clean was due to the limited presence of the Der Stürmer, an “anti-Semitic Nazi propaganda mouthpiece that dedicated itself full time to attacking Jews in Germany” (Holmes 67). The newspaper was established in 1923, and it propelled the racist acts fueled by the Nazi regime. The newspaper was forbidden from being published during the 16 days of Olympics. Orlow and Mandell elucidate that “The Nazis decided not to sell Der Stürmer during the Olympic Games because the international tourists could have read it” (Orlow and Mandell 11). However, Hitler did not want tourists to read the newspapers and thus get to know what was really happening in Germany.
Most people who came to Germany were not aware of the temporal removal of the anti-Jewish signs. Hitler carried out a police roundup in Roma, and he ordered the ministry of interior to deploy police officers to guard Roma. In the two weeks, Large repost that about 800 Roma who resided in Berlin were arrested and put under police guard (Large 7). The officers were also ordered not to subject the foreign visitors under the strict laws such as the German anti-homosexuality laws and other criminal penalties (Large 8). However, After the Olympics, the post-game reports however narrated that Hitler pressed for a grandiose plan for Germany’s expansion and the persecution. The situation worsened, and after two days, an Olympic called Captain Wolfgang Fuerstner committed suicide after he was dismissed from serving in the military service due to his Jewish ancestry. Certainty, tensions resulted in untold destructions and accelerated enmity which culminated into one of the deadliest war and the holocaust.
Holmes wrote that the success of the propaganda was a based on two major factors. First, the sheer scale of events that the visitors experienced was not witnessed in any modern international sport including Olympics (Holmes 23). Secondly, the Berlin Olympics had a wide global media reach, and it was the first nation to broadcast the games via radio. The live broadcast gained a global audience, and thus the games boosted the Germany reputation. The anti-discriminatory of the Nazi regime overwhelmed the global audience and disapproved held notions (Hilton 44).
Negotiations were made centering on the likeliness of Jewish participation. The potential antidiscrimination strategies against the Jews were done in a deceitful and cynical way. At the greatest sporting activity in the world, Hitler understood that he would require the Americans on board and thus he called upon the Jewish Sporting Federation to nominate representatives from the Germany team. This is what coined the term “token Jew” in the Olympic Games (Niewyk 40). Hitler managed to influence the Americans to participate in the Olympics. Mayer even gave the Nazi a salute after receiving the silver medalist. Furthermore, the start of the Nazi Olympics was an African American who was 22 years called Jesse Owens (Young 84). Owens received international fame after winning four gold medals in 200 meters, 100 meters, 4 x 100 meter relay and long jump. The victory correctly mirrored Hitler’s propaganda agenda. After Owens won the medals, he wrote in his diary that the “White humanity should be ashamed” and thus aided in promoting Nazi strategy (Kessler 6).
Hitler’s propaganda was not only evident in concealing the militarist nature and promotion of anti-Semitic policy but also through the concentration camps that were built to keep off people who were a threat to the mission. At the start of 1936, Nazi opted to build political prisons and labor camps near the city of Berlin such as Sachsenhausen camp (Hilton 54). Hitler purposed to imprison individuals who would cause destruction in Hitler’s propaganda ideology during the games.
Conclusion
Indeed, Hitler successfully reinvigorated the Nazi party in the 16 days Olympic games using propaganda coups. Hitler was a brilliant leader and knew how to play his cards to influence the public opinion. During the 1936 Olympics, Hitler opted to use propaganda to present Germany as a peaceful, non-racists, welcoming and a loving nation. He used propaganda such as incorporating Jewish athletes in the Olympics, banning the selling of racist newspapers and ordering police officers not to subject visitors to criminal penalties. Hitler wanted to make the visitors think that his nation promoted open-mindedness and was racial tolerant. As such, the many athletes and foreign diplomats who came to Germany were significantly impressed with what they saw, and this was achieved through enormous propaganda that Hilter employed.
Works Cited
Hilton Christopher "Hitler's Olympics: The 1936 Berlin Olympic Games". Vol 44, no. 10, 2007, pp. 44-5711-44-5711. American Library Association, doi:10.5860/choice.44-5711.
Holmes, Judith. Olympiade 1936. Demoniah, 1992.
Kessler, Mario. "Only Nazi Games? Berlin 1936: The Olympic Games between Sports and Politics". Socialism and Democracy, vol 25, no. 2, 2011, pp. 125-143. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1080/08854300.2011.579476.
Large, David Clay. ""Darktown Parade": African Americans in the Berlin Olympics of 1936". Historically Speaking, vol 9, no. 2, 2007, pp. 6-8. Johns Hopkins University Press, doi:10.1353/hsp.2007.0095.
Niewyk, Donald L. "The Jewish Enemy: Nazi Propaganda during World War II and the Holocaust". Central European History, vol 40, no. 02, 2007. Cambridge University Press (CUP), doi: 10.1017/s0008938907000672.
Orlow, Dietrich, and Richard D. Mandell. "The Nazi Olympics". The American Historical Review, vol 77, no. 1, 1972, p. 174. JSTOR, doi: 10.2307/1856674.
Young, Christopher. "‘In Praise Of Jesse Owens’: Technical Beauty At The Berlin Olympics 1936". Sport in History, vol 28, no. 1, 2008, pp. 83-103. Informa UK Limited, doi: 10.1080/17460260801889269.
Graphic
The above graphical representation shows Helene Mayer, a silver medalist giving a salute to the Nazi at 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. The photo was taken during a ceremony at the Summer Olympics “From left on podium are: bronze medalist Jajima of Japan, gold medalist Jesse Owens of the United States and silver medalist Lutz Long of Germany” (Holmes 34).
The above photograph shows Jesse Owens, the African American athlete who was the star of the 1936 Olympic Games for winning four medals. The photo was taken when he started running the 200 meter race.
