COMMUNIST PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE COLD WAR

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 05190486
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• Document Page Count: 44
• Document Creation Date: July 13, 2023
• Document Release Date: February 22, 2022
• Case Number: F-2019-01816
• Publication Date: November 1, 1955

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PSYLAJOLOGICAL
IN TIE FiLPLIZJORK. OF THE COLD 'JAR
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COMMUNIST PSYCHOLOCICAL WARFARE IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE COLD WAR
IIIrRODU CT ION
CHAPTER I The Cold War
1. War and Society
2. The Hot War
3. The Cold War
4. Communism in the Hot War
5. Communism in the Cold War
CHAPTER II Psychological Marfare
1. Concept of Psychological Warfare
2. Morale in Connection with Psychological Warfare
3. Propaganda in Connection with Psychological Warfare
L. The Effect of Propaganda
5. The Media of Propaganda
CHAPTER III Communist Psychological Warfare
1. Relationship between Communist Psychological Warfare
and Cold War
2. The Importance of Communist Propaganda
3. The Tactics of Communist Propaganda
4. The Objectives of Communist Propaganda
5. Communist Propaganda and the Undermining of Morale in
the Free World
a. Intensification of conflicts
b. Policy of Smiles
6. Organization of Communist Propaganda
7. Communist Propaganda Media
CONCLUSION
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INTRODUCTION
This treatise has as its starting point the realities of war in the present-
day world. This war is the conflict between the Communist and non-Communist world.
This conflict appears in many forms, sometimes it appears in the form of hot war
and then in the form of cold war. Often it appears in an ideological form, and
then again its political character comes to the foreground. At times the accent is
on diplomacy and at other tines on psychological means. In one area the conflict
might come into the opens and in another it is carried out secretly. This multitude
of forms of the present-day war, as well as the increasing realization of a need to
know its many aspects, stimulates an increasing number of interested persons to
undertake a study of the many forms of this conflict.
As it 4.6 the case in other areas of research, what is needed is not a multitude
of detailed studies but only a small number of studies which deal with a description
of warfare in its entirety.
The first chapter makes an attempt in the latter direction in which are used
as many as possible the exisitng concepts with the modifications and amplifications
which are needed to present the problem in its entirety as clearly and compre-
hensively as possible and with the accent on the cold war.
This cold war has many aspects; its psychological aspect is the topic of the
second chapter. The main part of psychological warfare is propaganda. Propaganda
is a powerful weapon in Communism's battle. It is the topic of the third chapter.
Even though propaganda in its entirety will be dealt with in that chapter, the
emphasis will be placed on propaganda in connection with psychological warfare by
Communism.
Since psychological warfare is concentrated against the opponent, Communist
psychological warfare will be dealt with in this treatise mainly as it concerns
the opponent, i.e., the non-Communist world.
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CHAPTER I The Cold War
1. War and Society
War has been waged ever since mankind existed. History, as it has been taught,
is largely a history of wars. In view of the great importance of war in the
development of society, it is very surprising that so little attention has been
paid to the study of war as a phenomenon of human society. A history of wars has
been developed, but there has been no doctrine on the causes of war and the effects
of war on society. It has been the great merit of a French sociologist, Gaston
Bouthoul, to ask, In his book Les Guerres, published in 1951, for a science which
deals with war as a sociological phenomenon. His book is an attempt to indicate
the bases and contents of such a science.
Indeed, a science of war never has been more necessary than now. While formerly
the damage and sorrow caused by war was limited, the effects of modern war have
become so extensive that they stand in no relation to the ones of former wars. The
recent large-scale development of modern destructive weapons has brought the danger
that their use might lead to the annihilation of our civilization.
Parallel with the realization of the terrible consequences of modern war, an
awareness has steadily grown that war apparently fulfills some functions in our
civilization and has much deeper roots in it than was formerly assumed. This
realization leads to the question whether war is as much an essential part of humai
existence as the vital instinct and whether it can be avoided, provided that the
right measures are taken. Even though there are many who believe that war is
inherent in our existence and that it therefore will remain in existence, there
have been in recent times others who insist on the possibility that war can be
avoided.
The trust in this possibility must be based upon knowledge of the causes of
war. Even though there is no unanimity as to the causes of war, recent research has
shed much more light on the subject, and a trend to study more thoroughly the
questions in this field has became noticeable. For example, the Institute for
Social Research in Oslo has established a prize of 10,000 Kronor for the best
work dealing with the "Problem of the Relationship between Scientific Research and
the Peace Problem". In 1954 the same institute published a book entitled Research
for Peace which contains the three most important essays received. The report
contains a survey, based on the contributions received, dealing with the causes of
war. This survey gives a good picture of the multitude and the complexity of
causes. Even though there might be in specific cases one overpowering cause, it is
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the rule that a complexity of causes is at the root of wars. For example, there
are ideological, psychological, political, economic, and social factors.
2. The Hot War
In the past, the concept of war has always been related to force. Von Clausewitz,
in his famous book On War, defines war as follows: "War is an act of force aimed at
subjecting our opponent to our will. Physical force is the means, and subjecting the
enemy to our will is the aim." (Part I, Section 1, Chapter 1, para 2.)
Gaston Bouthoul defines war in the above-cited book Les Guerresl(page 37) as
follows: "In short, war is a form of force which has as its essential characteristic
that it is methodic and organized with respect to the groups which carry it out and to
the manner in which it is executed. Moreover, it is limited in time and space and
subject to special rules of law, very changeable according to place and time."
In military contemplations, the aim of war, as a rulesis decribed in one or the
other of the following ways: to force one's awn will upon the enemy; to subject
the enemy's will to one's own will; to eliminate the enemy's will to resist; to
break the enemy's will to resist.
There is no real difference in the above definitions; they all amount to the
same: to break the enemy's will of resistance in order to assert one's own will.
The hot war therefore consists of imposing one's awn will upon the enemy. This
type of war has always been more or less the last resort; it was only used after
all other means - political, economic or psychological - had failed.
The weapons of the hot war have gone through a tremendous revolution: the effect
of primitive weapons cannot be compared with the effect of the most modern ones.
Naturally, those changes have also ceased an evolution in the impact of hot war.
While the impact of past wars had been local, the malern war is characterized by its
universal consequences. This development has led to a new concept of hot war. War
has become so terrible that both parties abstain from taking this ultimate step. Even
though one party may succeed in defeating the other, the risk remains that in doing so,
the winning party destroys itself. This concept does not maintain that "limited" hot
wars are impossible. The most important deterrent of unlimited hot war is the
possession by both parties of new weapons with very great destructive power. When-
ever the two parties do not extend their warfare outside a definite area and limit
themselves to the use of "conventional" weapons, then a war has come into existence
which can be called a "limited hot war" or a "small hot war within the cold war."
In connection with the above-mentioned development of warfare and the present
political situation, which is defined by the conflict between the Communist and
the non-Communist worlds, there has been in recent years a tendency to talk about
new or changed warfare. One really should not talk about new warfare, since the
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change consists only in shifting the accent from violent to non-violent weapons.
This changed type of warfare is the object of study not only for military science,
but other sciences will increasingly deal with it. While the descriptions of the
new type of warfare differ in several points, there is agreement in many respects.
There is complete agreement about the name of this type of warfare, which is
universally called "cold war".
3. The Cold War
Clausewitz wrote the famous aphorism that war is the continuation of politics
by other means. By that he wanted to indicate that war is the means of reaching a
political objective. If a name is needed to describe the conflict between states or
groups of states in which one party imposes its will on the other, then the term
"political warfare" seems to be the most satisfactory, since it serves to indicate the
whole field of warfare, including, besides the hot war, all other forms of warfare,
which serve to impose one's will on the enemy. Since the last world war many
American political and social scientists have paid more and more attention to the
study of political warfare in all its phases. A book entitled Propaganda in War and
Crisis was published in the United States in 1951; it contains contributions by
several writers, dealing with propaganda, mostly in the field of political warfare.
In same of these contributions, the whole field of warfare is described as political
warfare which uses different means, the most important of which are diplomatic
propaganda, economic and military means. The application of non-military means can
be called "cold war".
The term political warfare does not cover all facets and elements of warfare
which is obvious whenever ideological factors come into play. These can be very
important, they can be the basis Of the conflict aid thereby also determine the
character of the whole warfare. They can become so overpowering that the whole
conflict can be ttermed as ideological warfare.
Espionage has always played an important role in warfare . Modern war is
inconceivable without espionage. This applies also to the cold war. Diplomatic,
economic and psychological warfare have to be based on firm knowledge which is
largely obtained by espionage.
Thus, on the basis of the above considerations, cold war can be defined as
that conflict which, together with hot war, forms political warfare and which
aims at imposing one's will upon the enemy with non-violent weapons. This cold
war, which deep down may be an ideological conflict, is mainly conducted as diplomatic,
economic, and psychological war in which espionage is an essential component.
It becomes clear from the above that cold war is nothing new, since in antiquity
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its importance was known. In the India of the pre-Christian era, there existed a
political science which appeared in text books. One of the best known text books,
Atthasastra, is attributed to Kautilyal which was probably the pen-name of a
chancellor of a prince living in the fourth century B. C. This text contains the
following with respect to hot and cold war:
"Whenever you want to occupy the country of your enemy, you have to
equip an army in order to conquer that country. Your infantry will swarm
down on that country like locusts. The roads will resound from the wheels
of your chariots. Countless of your and the enemy's soldiers will be
killed by weapons. The fires of the battle will burn the fields and level
the houses to the ground. Whenever the power of your army is great, you will
prevail and you and your war leaders will gain fame. But the riches of the
country which you occupy will have been destroyed. Yes, you will have to
use your awn stocks of grain to feed the people of the conquered area.
Your war leaders will have to rebuild the houses they destroyed, and many
years will pass before the fields will yield again the harvest they yielded
before the war. Isn't such a war mostly just a drive by your war leaders
for worthless fame? There are other means in order to conquer the country
of your enemy without losing the riches of that country. The following is
the acme of skillful warfare: Have hand-picked men penetrate unnoticed into
the country of your enemy. Have them reconnoiter for the weaknesses in the
enemy's fortresses. Furnish them with ample means so that they will be
able to buy the enemy's counselors. Let them sow distruct in the hearts
of its friends and instigate hatred in the hearts of its enemies. Let them
induce infidelity in the enemy's wives and foster jealousy among its sons.
Promise freedom to its slaves and have them instigate mutiny among the body
guard of your enemy. Poison the wells from which the beasts of burden
drink and burn dawn the 1,114re houses containing war materials. Commit
atrocities against your enemy's people in your enemy's name so that the
people will grumble and hate your enemy. First, send your agents in order
to accomplish all that and then set your army in motion to occupy the
country. With the country in unrest and with his friends and relatives
set against him, your opponent will not think of giving battle to you.
He will flee into his secret hideout, leaving you all his riches."
Since cold war is such an old story, why then has this type of warfare not
played a greeted role in history and why has the importance of cold war increased
so much in our times? It will not be possible to determine the role of the cold
was in all its occurrences, since it occurs partly in secrecy and since its
expressions and results never can be determined as exactly as is the case with the
hot war. Furthermore, even though hot war was a last resort, it Was nevertheless
quickly used. This has changed in our times. One realizes that a hot war might
mean the end for all parties concerned. Moreover, the realization is growing
that the desired aim can be achieved in its entirety or practically in its
entirety by other means. This realization, together with a world situation which
is more and more determined by the conflict between the CommOnist and non-Communist
campslhave shifted the accent to the cold war.
As has been mention above, political warfare - and thus the cold war - is based
often on ideological conflict. Ideology is not only a basis, but also an aim and
a means to obtain this aim. It serves not only as justification but also as a
driving force for the conflict. Whenever cold war is based on ideology, it will be
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mainly directed against the ideology of the enemy, mostly in conjunction with
attempts to spread one's own ideology.
Cold warfare - besides ideological warfare - consists of diplomatic,
economic, and psychological warfare. Diplomatic warfare consists mainly of
political negotiations aimed mainly at weakening the political power of the
opponent. Economic warfare aims at weakening the material potential of the
enemy. This entails not only direct action against that potential by sabotage,
but also all kinds of actions aimed at preventing strategic materials from reaching
the enemy.
One of the most important means in subjecting the opponent's will is psychological
warfare of which the most prominent form of expression is propaganda. Psychological
warfare aims at breaking the enemy's will to resist by systematically belaboring
the spirit, or, better, by undermining the morale of the opponent.
Espionage is an integral part of the cold var. Successful espionage
strengthens one's awn position by increasing knowledge of the enemy. This
strengthening may be indirect: one knows more about the strengths and the weak-
nesses of the enemy. But it may also be direct: knowledge gained from the enemy -
unknown until then in one's awn camp - is immediately put to one's own is.
Strengthening of one's own position is, relatively speaking, weakening of the
enemy's position. This weakening becomes even more obvious if the enemy loses a
monopoly position which was based on some definite knowledge.
Cold war is being conducted overtly as well as covertly. Political negoti-
ations may be conducted in the open, as well as secretly. The results may be
completely or partly revealed or may be kept secret in their entirety. Economic
warfare may be conducted partly in the open and partly clandestinely. Sabotage
is carried out covertly, as is illegal trade in strategic materials.
Psychological warfare is partly conducted in the open and partly kept very
secret. Propaganda work of persons or groups is carried out mostly in secret,
and the spreading of rumors is likewise an activity that takes place in secret.
The secret character of espionage is self-evident.
We have already dealt with the "limited hot war" of the "small war within the
cold war". This type of war cannot be called cold war since violent means are
being used. The same actually applies to civil war. Revolution and coup d'etat
are on the borderline between hot and cold war. Due to the violent nature of
those activities, there is reason not to consider them as cold wars.
The fact that the term "cold war" has been used in many official documents
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proves that it has bec tl
ome a cearly-defined reality. The cold war has an
important place in the "Statement on Defense", submitted to Parliament by the
British Minister of Defense. The introduction contains the following passage:
"It is surely not prudent for the government not to resist Communist imperialism
in the cold war. Weakness and indecisiveness vis-a-vis limited aggression will not
serve in averting a big war. The existence of nuclear weapons may deter, as it has
been the case in Korea, the Communist powers from open armed intervention, due to the
risk of a development to unlimited warfare. But, on the same hand, it may encourage
aggression by infiltration and subversive activities. We should therefore, in line
with our endeavors in developing deterrents and our rejection of a big war, increase
all our available means as a defense against this type of aggression, including the
maintenance of appropriate conventional military power. We must stand together
with other Commonwealth countries and our allies in order to resist the spreading
of Communism over the world."
The great importance which is being given to the cold war in comparison with
the hot war, can be clearly seen from the priorities established in the above
statement: the build-up of deterrents; the waging of cold war; preparations for
a hot war.
4. Communism and the Hot War
Communism- differentiates between unjustified and justified wars. Unjustified
wars are the wars of conquest which the bourgeoisie wages against the proletariat,
justified wars are the wars of liberation conducted by the proletariat against the
bourgeoisie.
Communism has developed two opinions with respect to war. On the one hand, it
gets chilly treatment; on the other hand its advantages for Communism are recognized.
In their contemplations of war, the comniunists differentiate, in addition to the
above-mentioned differentiation, between wars among imperialist powers and wars by
the imperalist camp agtinbt the'Commuhitt-eapp.
With respect to mars among imperialist countries, it is believed that they
can be harmful, since the Communist camp might become involved in them. On the
other hand, this involvement might work to the advantage of Communism. Lenin had
the firm conviction that imperialism will lead to war among the imperialist powers.
After the second world war, there were somer people in the Soviet Union who did not
believe any longer in the inevitability of such a war. Stalin, in his Economic
Problems of Socialism in the USSR (1952) opposed this opinion. In this book he
defends the position that the total number of conflicts among the capitalist
countries is greater than the one between the socialist and capitalist camps; in
this connection he points to the second world wax which started as a war among
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capitalistic countries. He believes that there are no guarantees for the development
of harmony, and that therefore the thesis of the inevitability of wars between
capitalistic countries remains valid.
With respect to the second type of war (between the communtst and the capitalist
camps), the communists have a tendency to consider it, for the time being, as harmful.
This type of war can hardly be advantageous when the formation of the Communist camp
has been completed and the capitalist camp disintegrated completely. Lenin was
still completely convinced that war between communism and irperialist is unavoidable.
Stalin added a condition to this concept which does not change the doctrine itself.
He thinks that war is unavoidable when the warmongers get hold of the masses, but
that peace can be preserved when "the people take the cause of the peace in their
own hands" (Pravda, 17 February 1951). The present rulers of the Soviet Union
have to consider the possibility that their peace offensive will not have the
results hoped for, and that the power of the "warmongers" will become so great that
they will drag the "capitalistic camp" into a hot war. This gives them the
justification for the maintenance of strong military power. On 12 March 1954,
Malenkov declared in an election speech that a third world war would mean the end of
world civilization, but many prominent communists are stressing now that a third
world war would mean the end of the capitalistic world. The communists believe
in the final victory of communism over capitalism and that a world war would find
them the winners, but at the same time they continue to be realists. That means
that they consider realistically the possible consequences of a war fought with the
most modern weapoqs of destruction. Therefore, they do not want war due to the
tremendous risk still connected with it and the unquestionably high price which
would have to be paid. And wat for anyway? The aims can be reached completely
or almost completely in another way: the cold war.
5.' Communism in the Cold War
Communism aims at a world wide Communist society. This aim implies conflict
with the capitalist world. According to our above remarks, this conflict may be
called political warfare. It is being conducted on the basis of an ideology
which comprises for communism a doctrine, a belief and a driving force. Due to
the risk which is now connected with hot war, this type of war has to be avoided.
When this type of war is stated between "imperialist" powers, it is to be used to
the advantage of communism. Whenever necessary, limited wars will be darned out.
Civil wars, revolutions and coups Metat will be used for the promotion of communism.
Moreover, communism will conduct cold war, i.e., impose its will on the enemy by
political negotiations, economic warfare, and psychological warfare.
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The political negotiations are aimed at increasing dissension among the non-
Communist countries, especially the countries which have joined in an alliance
against the Communist countries.
Economic warfare aims at the economic potential of capitalist. Active and
passive sabotage are to be used. Passive sabotage will take the form of strikes,
which apparently have social aims but in reality have political aims.
Psychological warfare is mainly directed against the morale of the capitalist
world. All kinds of people and groups will be played up against each other.
Where there are no conflicts they will be created and where there are conflicts
they will be intensified. Tension will be created among classes, between peoples
and governments, and among nations. This type of warfare aims at developing an
attitude toward communism which will seriously undermine resistance to communism.
Espionage will probe the strength and weaknesses of the capitalist camp and
will attempt to deprive it of the monopoly positions which are based on some
definite knowledge.
Communists consider the cold war as the best method to effect the disintegration
of capitalist camps. The best chances for disintegration exist when the conflicts
within that campare intensified. According to Communist doctrine, imperialist
contains several fundamental antagonisms which in the end must lead to its destruction.
These antagonisms are the ones between capital and labor, the ones among imperialist
countries, and the ones between imperialist countries and the countries exploited
by imperialism. Communists pay the greatest possible attention to these conflicts,
which under certain circumstances might take changing aspects but which fundamentally
always remain the same. Prominent communists have again and again stressed those
conflicts. For example, Molotov in his report On the International Situation and the
Foreign Policy of the Government of the USSR (8 February 1955) notes the following:
"The foreign policy of the Soviet Union has to take into account not only the
existence of considerable conflicts among individual capitalistic countries, but also
the conflicts within those countries and even within the individual segments of
capitalistic classes and groups. It is our taks to utilize those conflicts for the
maintenance and the intensification of peace in order to weaken the aggressive and
anti-democratic powers." (For an Enduring Peace, for People's Democracy, 18
February 1955).
The communists use the term "cold war" only in the sense of a cold war conducted
by the Western powers against the Communist countries. An article on "Collective
Leadership" in Pravda of 27 December 1952 notes in this connection: "The policies
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used in 'cold war'
against the Soviet Union are inimical
to the cause of peace.
They prevent normal relations between states. Those who are instigating
agressive policies are against negotiations and agreements between sovereign
states and are intent on intimidating peace-loving people with the threatening
rattle of weapons."
The existence of the cold war conducted by communism is not being perceived
by the people at large, and by some only here and there; however, there are also
many who have a keen understanding of the permanent character of this type of war.
A significant contribution in this respect is being made in the studies of the cold
war in all or part of its aspects by the military profession, by students of political
and social science, and by others. Surely, there is no unanimity with respect to
descriptions and concepts of the cold war, but there is much unanimity in the
appraisal of the importance of Communist cold war in our times. In the following
there are a few quotes related to the cold mar concept:
In 1950, a book entitled The Front is Everywhere was published in the United
States. It was written by W. R. vintner, an American officer who during his
studies at GeorgAown University, and later on, paid special attention to the
military character of communism. On page 169 he wrote the following: "Termite
warfare is an exact description... Just like a tree must rot so that the earth is
ready for new growth, so must, according to the Communists, the whole world as we
know it be reduced to unrecognizable fragments before they will establish their
new order. But in order to destroy the tree of capitalism termites will have to
undermine and weaken the sturdy fibre of its wood. Termite warfare confronts every
non-Communist country with two enemies: an external and an internal one. The
external enemy is the USSR about whose competition with the dapitalistic world
Stalin once remarked, 'One or the other has to win out'. The internal enemy is the
fifth column and its friends, sympathizers and fellow-travelers."
The book Les Guerres en Chaine by the well-known Frenchman, Raymond Aron, appeared
in 1951. The English edition The Century of Total War, appeared three years later.
On page 171 of that edition he wrote the following with respect to cold war: " Cold
war is a limited mar, limited not by that whiah is itt.,btake but by the means which
are being used by the belligerents. Seen from the viewpoint of the West, it is,
directly and unavoidably, the result of the line of action taken by the Kremlin and
its subservient parties all over the world: propaganda, espionage and sabotage,
agitation in mass movements, and civil war are the four typical forms which mostly
appear in combination. Furthermore, we may state that the cold war is the result
of the Soviet program of world conquest, as:long as the Kremlin does not resort to
open warfare."
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An American committee, the National Planning Association, which concerns itself
with the study of planning in trade, agriculture, labor and profession, issued a
statement in December 1954 on the American policy in the new phase of the cold war.
It contains the following passage: "The present orientation of Soviet policy
suggests that the masters of the Kremlin want to avoid a world conflict, at least
for the time being. It seems likely that they will not start a third world war
until they are convinced that the first blow will be so destructive that it will
be decisive. Even then, their continued successes in the cold war will work as
a deterrent against hasty adventures. Thus, we can expect that the Soviet Union will
try, for some time to come, to extend its reign b infiltration, subversive activites,
even by economic assistance, and possibly, on occasion, by local military excursions,
always using its continaally growing strength in non-conventional weapons as a means
of political blackmail on the European and Asiatic continents."
It is the aim of communism in the cold war to effect such a disintegration in
the free world countries that they will fall to communism by themselves or that they
will be ripe for the death blow.
Cold war by communism confronts the Vest with many problems. One of the big
problems is that it appears, at times, to diminish in intensity or even to cease
completely, while in reality there had been only a change in tactics. If one
wants to understand the words and deeds of the Communist rulers, one should not
evaluate their apparent meaning but should relate them to a background of a Communist
war started 100 years ago with the aim of establishing Communist rule over the world.
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MITER II PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFAaE
le Concept of Psychological Warfare
In conjunction with the increasing importance of psychological war�
fare, there has been an increase in the number of meanings of its concept.
Obviously the term must always mean that there is warfare which is connected
with psychology. But then the differences of opinion begin. There are
those who deny that this is warfare, while others claim that they type
of warfare has little to do with psychology. On the one hand, there is
an opinion that psychological warfare must always be directed against an
enemy, on the other hand there is the opinion that alsa the influencing
of a neutral party and even of one's own party can be called psychological
warfare. There is a narrow definition of the concept which identifies it
with propaganda, and there is the broader interpretation )f the concept
which includes also the psychological effects )f political, economic, and
military actions.
One part of the concept has the meaning of warfare, while the ,,t:)er part
is free of that meaning. As far as it is directed against the opponent, it
is warfare. In that case it plays an important role in the sum total of
means that are being used in paitical warfarn in order to impose one's
own will on the enemy. The influencing )f neutrals r friends can hardly
be called wqrfare. That is even more truc in connc'A)n witll the influencing
of one's 017:1 0-1,1y1 it sounds strLin e to call the strengthening of one's
own morale psychological warfare. 11.2,t the term in its wider leaning, i. e.
the influencing af �cneir, neutals, friends, and prIls ovrn coup, in heing used
freciueatly. This type f warfre is called psychological, because it is based
on ps;rcllulogy :tad ho as its objective a psycholojicl situation. Psychological
wrf -e noes mainly propaganda, but it is also defined by all kinds of actions
that have a psychological effect on va-fare.
Ma the basis of the above, it is possible to arrive at the following
definition: psychological warfare is both a part of the cold and the hot
war; its aim is a psychological influencing of the opponent, one's own
country, neutrals, and friends in the interest )1-� warfare; its principal
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weapon for reaching its goal is propaganda.
Since psychological w rfare is pflrt of warfare, it is being c)nducted
by the state. The state may have its own organs for this and it may
agisist private persons who are engaged in this type of warfare. The
United States and the Soviet Union have organizations in the field of
psychological warfare that are being directed b� the authorities.
Prior t ) the Second World War, the term psychological warfare was
practically used only in its military meanin-. When after the war the
concept f "cold 11-,r" was fr nd, ti 1.1-dsr
fare ,2 anti 7-,erc)71.:
� -
r.7-1
th7 lilto.--;st
to study it. Therefore, oir: have now studies by pro;:essional soldiers, non�
carrer military personnel, and private parsons. Artj_cles by military people
have appeared during the last years in military periodicals, which have
stressed the great importance )f psychological warfare not only in the hot
but also in the cold war. Especially valuable are the contributions of those
who during the last war had something to do with psychological warfare and
wrote papers about their experiences. An example of this is the book of the
American Professr Paul M. A. Linebarger Psychological Warfare, which is
often used in military circles as a standard tome. A second printing was
published in 1954, possibly due to the new situation � often described
cold war � and the appearance of all kinds of publications in the psychological
warfare field. The second edition contains a completely new chapter dealing
with the post�war situation. Despite the fact that the first three parts of
the book still have a strung military orientation, the topic is this time
treated in its wider relations, and non�military ele:ftents have been considered.
Non�military writers likewise have paid increasilv attention to the phenomenon
of psychological warfare . The number of articles on this topic in newspapers
and periodicals is increasing. Special studies are being made dealing with
the topic. For example, in 1951 a book appeared in France with the title:
Ls Guerre en question. Its author, Jules Monnerot, who was already known
from his studies on Communism, deals with the conflict between the Communist
and non�Communist world and stresses that it is mainly a psychological waffare.
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Psychological warfare is in many ways related to the other forms of
the cold war. Besides having the same aim, it frequestly directly supports
diplomatic and ec)nomic warfare, which in turn have an inUence on psychological
warfare. Political negOtiations as well as ec)nomic measures may have a
definite psychological effect.
2. Morale in Connection with Psychological Warfare
Earlier we established the imposition of one's will on the opponent
as the aim of warfare. Psychological warfare serves the same aim; with
respect to the enemy it amounts to breaking his will to fight and with
respect to one's own camp to strenthening of the will to fight. When one
speaks of "morale" in connection with warfare, then this term corresponds
to a large degree with the will to fight. If one leaves out the influencing
of neutral powers and friends, one may define psychological warfare as
follows: the strengthening of one's own morale and the undermining of the
opponent's morale. Even though the concept is beyond the material sphere,
material factors nevertheless play an imp:)rtant role. Food, clothing and
stimulants may under Wtain circumstances materially influence morale. A
certain minimum living standard has to be maintained tp keep morale on an
even keel. Belief in one's own cause and the war aims are esseritial morale
fact)rs. Another fact)r is trust in the leadership, that is trust in the
sense of a Lelief that the leadership is going the right way and using the
best means to reach the objectivew. Next t trust in the leadersh p is
mutual trust as a m.)rale fact)r. It is important fir morale building to
eliminate fric ions influencing morale within their camp, or, if this
should prove impossible, at least to mitigate them. Psychological warfare
directed at the strengthening of one's own morale has to stress the above�
named factors. Psychological warfare directed toward under-aining the opponent's
morale must stress the same fact irs. It has to attempt to weqken the belief
in the good cause. It has to stress that the war qims will never be reached
of that the real aims differ from the alleged ones. It will bring the leader�
ship into discredit by stressing its unworthy motives, its wrong procedures,
its incompetence and by stressing any other bad points. A well�tested
method in the undermining of the opponent's morale is to intensify the
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frictions existing in his camp. E& sting frictions can be intensified
or new conflicts can be created. Where conflicts exist already, they
will be intensified. Intense frictions, kept alive ty, all kinds of
means, will in time have a disintegrating influence on the 14hole.community
They undermine uni_ty and create conflictswtich will seriously affect
the community as such.
Psychological warfare isInot limited to one's own camp and the
opponent but also aims at neutral powers and friends whjch will be
influenced so as to make friends out of neutrals and greater friends
out of friends. This is done by representing the opponent as a threat
to humanity and as harmful to the individual and the community, while
one's own country is depicted in the opposite ww. To be connected
with one's own country is represented as a service to the community
and, in addition, as an advantage to the party concerned. All kinds
of friendly acts will create a climate of friendliness which in the
end will lead to a Imrmanent friendly attitude. Ahile psychological
warfare against the enemy to a large degree consists of the intensi-
fication of conflicts, it aims, when applied to neutrals and friends
and to the conflictin one's own country, at removing the conflicts
as much as possible and at creeting definite ties.
3. Propaganda in connection with Psychological Aarfare
The importance of propaganda is worldwide. The findings of the
science of psychology have deepened the knowledge of its character
and capabilities. The apL2lication of other sciences has added a
tremendous radius to the methods of propagandizing. It can participate
71n a significant way in the forming of public opinion, which in dem-
ocracies has an important role and in countries with a.thoritaran
governments remains a factor that has to seriously considered by
the governing group.
Modern man who lives in an increasingly complicated world needs
again and again new knowledge in order to understand the situation
around him. Mostly he has not the time, the opportunity or the
interest to familiri70 himself thoroughly with events. The result
is that he has little or very superficial knowledge about many matters,
a knowledge whimostly has come to him by orcpaganda media. ;,ife is
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inconceivable without propaganda. Man is being influenced by propaganda
in many ways and in many fields. Therefore, the importance of propaganda
cannot be underestimated, but on the other hand it is subjected to
limitations which are determined by the circumstances of those to whom it
is directed and by its psychical nature.
Propaganda is the main element of psychological warfare. Paul M.A.
Linebarger in his above-quoted book Psychological Warfare states the
following with respect to the relationship between psychological warfare
and propaganda: "Psychological warfare, in the broader sense, consists
of the application to warfare of parts of the science of psychology; in
the narrower sense, it includes the use of propaganda against the enemy
together with military operational measures that supplement propaganda."
(p. 25). In this book, the author also reproduces the definition of
psychological warfare given in 1953 by the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff:
"Psychological warfare is the planned use of propaganda and related
measures of an informational nature aimed at the opinions, emotions,
institutions and conduct of the enemy or other foreign groups in order to
promote as much as necessary the execution of national policy and to
support the accomplishment of national targets."
With respect to propaganda, there has been much stress since the
Second World War on the increasing importance of its different aspects.
With the advance of the social and political sciences, there has been
and increase in the study of propaganda in its different forms, as, for
example, political propaganda and commercial propaganda, or its relation
to specific topies, such as public opinion in war. In 1955, a study was
published by Dr. G. A. M. Vogelaar, entitled System and Rules of Public
Information, in which he even pleads for a special science of information.
The author believes that it would be very useful for such fields as
advertising, political propaganda, press, public relations and similar
undertakings, to make a study of their kinship and their common denominators.
There are many definitions of propaganda, In the following we are
quoting three of them:
"In the general and broader sense, propaganda is information which
attempts to induce, by a biased presentation of facts, the informed
person to act in a certain way; according to this definition we could
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call it 'will-influencing' information. If one eliminates the
derogatory element from this definition, one arrives at a definition
of propaganda in its brodder sense as persuasive information." (Dr.
G.A.M. Vogelaar, 22. cit., p. 77)
"Let us conclude with the statement that propaganda is a
characteristic reality of our present civilization, It is a
scientific technique which, by continual action and by the rational
and methodical use of tested media, aims at arousing the approval by
the masses of an idea or doctrine, at obtaining the support of public
opinion, and even at involving the masses in certain actions." (Jacques
Driencourt, La Propaganda, Nouvelle Force Publique, 1950, p. 26)
"Propaganda is the planned use of some forms of information aimed
at influencing the thinking, emotions and actions of a definite group
for a special purpose." (Paul M. A. Linebarger, op. cit., p. 39)
On the basis of the above remarks one may arrive at the following
definition of "propaganda" in connection with psychological warfare:
Propaganda in the service of psychological warfare is an activity which by
planned use of suitable measures attempts to influence the opinions and
attitudes of a definite group of people in such a way that actions favoring
one's awn war effort will result.
L. The Effect of Propaganda
The above definition shows that the aim of propaganda is to influence
people to take some definite action. This means that a changed opinion or
attitude is not sufficient unless it leads to actions favorable to the
aims of the psychological warfare. The Communists aim to create with their
propaganda a friendlier attitude in the Western world vis-a-vis the Soviet
Union and an unfriendly attitude vis-a-vis the United States, but they aim
even higher, that is at activities favorable to the Soviet Union and
unfavorable to the United States.
These activities will take place only after influencing of more or less
superficial or deeper-lying areas of human personality. There are many
classifications and descriptions possible in this respect. We 'will use
hers the differentiations made by Dr. A. M. Z. Chorus in his book Bases
of Social Psychology (1953). In it he deals with, among other things,
the social behaviorism of people, related to "opinion" andflattitude". He
describes "opinion" as follows: "'Concept' is a general and neutral term
for a form of knowledge related to something or somebody. If this form
of knowledge, this complex of opinion and reasoning, is critically thought
att and well-based, then we call it a scientific concept or certain know-
ledge; if the concept is not well thought out, more or less vague, and
subjective and accidental by nature, then we all it an opinion or belief,
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or sometimes conjecture or impression, according to haw certain we are about
our ideas. In such a concept there are implicitly contained a judgment or
complex of judgments in which former observations, memories, imagination,
and thoughts play a role." (page 335). "Attitude" is described as follows:
"There is first of all a certain readiness for action... Furthermore the
readiness is supported by a certain measure of emotional pressure and
direction of endeavor: an interest in a definite direction. And as such,
'attitude' has a certain determining influence on a person: due to his
attitude, the person becomes selective with respect to things in his
surrounding. Finally, attitude is not behavior as such but something which
makes behavior possible and determines it." (page 342). The author uses
"attitude", "orientation", and "inclination" practically interchangeably.
He sees the difference in the last two terms as follows: "orientation deals
more with the "outward" readiness and the term "inclination" more with an
"inside" situition. (page 346).
The aim is to initiate action by propaganda. For that, opinion and
attitude have to be influences. Attitude in turn is rooted in the deeper
areas of human personality where desire determines the most basic aspect
of human nature: the satisfaction of needs. Attitude develops under the
influence of predisposition, experience, and milieu. Most important in
this connection is the degree of identification with a definite group. When
there is a high degree of identification, then the attitude of the group will
often be that of the member of the group. A number of conditions have to be
met to make propaganda successful, and those conditions determine the
tactics of propaganda. We are listing in the following three of the pre-
requisites:
In the first place, all the factors which have played a role ii opinion
and attitude forming have to be taken into account. Most of all, one will
have to consider the deep-down needs that influence attitude, since propa-
ganda has to be directed toward satisfying these needs.
Propaganda has to use symbols and slogans. These have to present the
parts of the doctrine in short, powerful and telling fashion in order to
create an emotional effect, despite the fact that they will have to be
based on rational concepts.
Continual repetition is of great importance. Whenever a definite
message is being hammered home and conditions are not unfavorable to the
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reception of the message, then repetition may become an extremely important
favorable factor. In the often-quoted book, Propaganda in War and Crisis,
Daniel Lerner lists in an article, "Effective Propaganda, Conditions and
Evaluation", the following prerequisites for effective propaganda: (1)
Attention by the public must be obtained; (2) Belief of the public must
be obtained; (3) The public must receive the changes aimed at by propaganda
as an acceptable alternative to presently existing expectations; (4) The
environment of the public must make the actions possible, which are
dictated by the changed structure of expectations.
Which effect can be expected from propaganda, if the necessary pre-
requisites are met? An opinion which mainly had been formed by reasoning
can be changed if the reasoning accepts the propaganda. The "knowledge"
provided by propaganda decreases to the same degree in which emotional
life has a co-determining influence on opinion. The smaller importance
of knowledge-providing propaganda applies even more to attitude where the
emotional influences are even stronger than in opinion. Can attitude be
changed and if so, by propaganda? It is quite generally agreed that
attitude can be changed and that such a change is often preceded by a long
process. Even though emotion plays a greater role with respect to attitude
than to opinion, there is a strong element of reasoning in it, and continual
knowledge-providing informational activity can certainly influence develop -
ment in the desired direction. The emotional element of attitude reciaires
a different kind of treatment. In order to change that element, completely
new experiences often seem necessary, while new means must be found to
satisfy the needs on which the old attitude was based. When someone had an
anti-American attitude, it might have cone about in many different ways. Be
may in his life have met a limited number of Americans and may have had
unpleasant experiences with all of them. It may also be that he had been
brought up in an anti-American atmosphere and that Americans were discussed
there only in an unfavorable way. An attitude which has been acquired in
that way is not easily "talked away", in fact it is not improbable that
such an effort would be unsuccessful. It is evident that he will have to
have many favorable experiences with Americans before his attitude changes.
If his anti-American sentiment springs from his aggressive nature, it is
often true that his attitude only can be changed by finding a new objective
for his aggressive needs. Propaganda has less chances to change an attitude
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than an opinion, but there are*some chances. In the above example, a
continue+tressing of the good sides of Americans would in the long run
have some influence. Even more fruitful will be contact with Americans
with whom no unpleasant but only the most pleasant experiences were had.
This way offers a great number of possibilities. The person concerned
may be invited to spend some time in America. One may bring him in
contact in his awn country with Americans who are sure to be sympathetic.
He may be supplied with literature on America. Movies on America may be
shown to him. One may have him assist in American meetings. One may try
to break his ties with an anti-American group. The propaganda may be either
direct or indirect.
5. The Media of Propaganda
Propaganda media may be either direct or indirect. The latter are
certain activities which on the surface have no propaganda aim or are
not primarily propaganda, but which in reality have a propaganda aim, like
cultural manifestations, exhibitions, sports. contests, etc. Their aim
is primarily to create a favorable climate toward the country or group
sponsoring the activities. The results may be obtained by a ballet
performance, or an agricultural exhibit, a scientific congress or a
soccer game. These methods are based on the inclination of people to see
unfavorable characteristics in a friendlier light whenever they had an
opportunity to admire certain good qualities.
Direct propaganda may be classified as fallaws:
1. Spoken ward;
2. Writing;
3. Visual media.
Technological development has spurred the development of possibilities
to conduct propaganda speedily, on a large scale, and in distant areas.
Radio has made the whole world available.
The spoken word has remained an important propaganda medium. Its
importance is not only determined by the knowledge it provides bat also
by its emotional effect. The public as a mass - in the sense of a group
of people who are close to one another - often reacts differently to
propaganda than its individual members would react if they were left alone.
The spoken word, used in the right way and the right environment, may have
a powerful effect.
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Many possibilities are offered by written propaganda, the most important
of which are books, newspapers and periodicals. The great advantage the
written word has over the spoken one is that it is more lasting. It conveys
more knowledge, while much is lost in the oral presentation. There is
more opportunity for reasoning and thinking.
One disadvantage is the
absence of the above-mentioqed emotional factor which is so strongly
emphasized by the spoken word.
Among the visual media of propaganda, the most important one is the
motion picture. Its importance as a propaganda medium increases in the
same degree as its techniques are being perfected. There is a much
greater impact on people seeing something rather than just hearing it
spoken. The viewing of a motion picture is an easy way of absorbing some-
thing and therefore also of exerting influence. A "talking" moving
picture incorporates the influence of the spoken word, which combined with
a picture, can become powerful. The same applies more or less to the
theatre. Many groups have in the last few years realized the important
role the theatre may have as a propaganda medium.
The illustrated periodical and music are special propaganda media
which may be used successfully. They can be considered as combinations
of the above-mentioned media. The illustrated periodical has the attractive-
ness of visual impact combined with the detailed description and narrative.
Music - as an adjunct of other media, but also in the form of songs - often
has a preponderantly emotional impact.
With respect to propaganda as conducted in the framework of
psychological warfare, one differentiates between white, grey and black
propaganda. The criterion there is mainly the source. White propaganda
is being conducted openly and mentions its source. Black propaganda
mentions no source or not the real one. Rumor is one of the more important
tools of black propaganda. Its origin is in the dark, its source is not
known or a wrong source is mentioned intentionally. Grey propaganda is
characterized by vacueness with respect to the source, which is left as it
is.
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CHAPrER III Communist Psychological Warfare
1. Relationship Between Communist Psychological Warfare and Cold War
We formulated cold war in the first chapter as follows: the conflict which
together with hot war forms political warfare and which aims at imposing one's will
upon the enemy with non-violent weapons. This cold war, which basically may be an
ideological conflict, is mainly being oonducted as diplomatic, economic and psycho-
logical warfare in which espionage is an essential element.
The battle of communism is defined as follows4 communism aims at a world-wide
Communist society. This aim implies conflict with the capitalistic world.
According to what we have said above, this battle may be called political warfare.
It is being conducted on the basis of an ideology which for communism has the
meaning of doctrine, belief, and motivating force. Due to the many risks which
now are connedted with big hot wars, these have to be avoided. When a war of this
type starts between "imperialist" powers, it is to be used to promote the cause of
communism. If necessary, limited wars are to be conducted. Civil wars, revolutions,
and coups d'etat are to promote the progress of communism. Otherwise, communism has
to obtain its aims by cold war, i.e., to impose its will on the opponent by means of
political negotiations, and economic and psychological warfare.
With respect to psychological warfare in the framework of communist cold war,
the following can be said: psychological warfare is mainly directed at undermining
the morale of the capitalistic world. This is to be achieved by instigating all
kinds of people and groups against one another, by creating frictions where none
exist and by intensifying them where they do exist, and by:,creating frictions between
classes, between peoples and their governments, and among countries. This warfare
aims at creating such an attitude vis-a*vis communism that the will to resist
communism becomes seriously undermined.
In the second chapter we defined psychological warfare as follows: psychological
warfare is both a part of the cold and the hot war; its aim is a psychological
influencing of the opponent, one's awn country, the neutrals, and friends. Psycho-
logical warfare includes not only undermining of the opponent's morale but also
strengthening of morale in one's own country and psychological influencing of friends
and neutrals. The opponent remains the most important target. Therefore we Allan in
the following stress communist psychological warfare aw directed against the opponent.
Its aim is to undermine the opponent's morale in such away that his will to resist
will be broken.
In the discussion of psychological warfare in general we mentioned its inter-
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relation with other parts of cold war. The same applies to the Communist cold
war. All parts aim at the same target. Psychological warfare supports the
diplomatic and economic warfare of communism and these in turn support psycho-
logical warfare. With respect todiplomatic warfare, one only has to remember
the negotiations of the USSR with Yugoslavia, Austria, and West Germany, the
different agreements of the "Big Four" and the setting up of NATO and SEATO.
Of the greatest importance in this respect was the Geneva Conference in the
summer of 1955 which had such an effect that many in the free world did not
accept any longer the term "psychological warfare" with respect to the actions of
the Soviet Union. Economic warfare too may support psychological warfare. A strong
economic potential may trigger a strong psychological effect. The economic assistance
given by the Soviet Union to under-developed countries together with its attempts to
expand East-West trade influence psychological warfare favorably.
The psychological effect of diplomatic and economic warfare is then accepted
by the communists as self-evident, at least as far as it is favorable. Diplomatic
negotiations and economic measures may even at first be undertaken for their
psychological effect. In that respect, even a certain political or economic loss
may be taken. Not only diplomatic and economic warfare have a psychological effect,
but force likewise. Psychological warfare must have the final psychological effect
of breaking the will to resist. In the following, we are not going to discuss this
effect but will limit ourselves to dealing with Communist psychological warfare in
its most important form: propaganda.
The Communists use the term "psychological warfare" only in relation to their
opponents, just as they do with the term "cold war". The folla*ing is a description
of American psychological warfare, as it was contained in Pravda of 17 July 1952:
"The principal weapon of psychological warfare by American imperialists
is their propaganda of lies. This is the infamous Voice of America, the
distribution of reactionary publications in countries depending on American
imperialism. These are more or less open methods, but at the bottom of it,
there is the buying up of newspapers and journalists, the spreading of
rumors and lies, espionage in all those countries in which U.S. diplomats
and spies succeeded in penetrating. Congress allocates hundreds of millions
of dollars for those purposes.
"Which are the tasks of the American psychological warfare? It has to
convince the peoples all over the world that allegedly the USA lives under
the threat of Soviet aggression; that the USA is the most democratic country
in the world; that the American way of life, just like Hitler's new order,
must become the general way of life on our planet. But this is only half the
story. The main task lies in the general rousing of unrest and insecurity,
the instigating of some peoples against others, the sowing of enmity and hate,
and the facilitating of American designs to unleash a new world war. For
this purpose, methods are being used which were used by Goebbels and his
assistants..."
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(b)(3)
2. The Importance of Communist Propaganda
We have already discussed the importance of ideological factors, which
may be so important that one may speak about "ideological warfare". When
one considers the present cold war between the Communist aid non-Communist
world, there is certainly much occasion for such a concept. Communist is
above All an ideology. The target of Communism is a Communist society in
all countries of the world. Communist society which has - even in the
opinion of the Communists- not yet materialized in any country, will be
characterized by such an abundance of material and cultural achievements
that everybody will r:-.ceive according to his needs. The basis of Communism
is the dialectical materialism and its application to society, the historical
materialism. It maintains that material (economic) factors determine the
development of humanity. This doctrine assumes for Communists the
character of a philosophy of life and concept of the world. Based on this,
they believe that human existence evolves with inescapable certainty to a
world-wide Communist society. They believe that the conflict of classes -
i.e. the irreconcilable conflict between the possessors and non-possessors
of the means of production - dominates the history of man. They believe
that this conflict will end in everycountry with the workers' accession to
power under the leadership of the Communist party. They believe that
development toward a Communist society will have two phases: the "construction
of socialism" is in full swing and that it is completed in the Soviet Union.
There, the second phase has already started and construction of dommunism
has begun.
The Communists consider it as their task to promote, with all available
means, a development toward a Communist society, which will come about by
absolute necessity. The most important Comunist power is the Soviet Union,
a country which is considered as the stronghold from which the battle has
to be conducted. Then there are other countries in which Communism has
come to power. Furthermore, there are the Communitt parties in the
"capitalistic" countries. In addition to the above-listed effectives, the
Communists include the revolutionary movements in colonies and other
dependent areas as "direct reserves". "Indirect reserves" are all conflicts
in the capitalist camp that may promote Communism. Tactics paly an
important role in the Communist struggle. Their great capacity for tactical
maneuvers serves the Communist very well. Often they will promote alliances
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with groups that really must be considered as their enemies. The Communists
have a good organization for the attainment of their aims. The core of the
organization is the Party, followed by all kinds of auxiliary organizations,
while non-ComTlunist organizations will be infiltrated. It might become
necessary to have an illegal apparatus in addition to the legal one in
order to carry out all kinds of subversive activities.
It is very clear that propaganda plays a tremendously important role
in the attainment of the Communist aim.
It established an ideology in the spirit of the dedicated Communist.
This ideology gives the Communist an explanation for the world and life
around him, it satisfies basic needs, it answers definite expectations,
it gives meaning to his life and becomes the driving motive of his existence.
The class struggle is unthinkable without propaganda. The non-possessors
of the means of production must always be made class-conscious. The
differences between the two classes must be intensified. A movement has tc
be created that will undermine the existing order and will be able to stage
a successful siezure of power.
The "construction of socialism" and the "construction of communism"
will not take place without the aid of propaganda. Propaganda will stress
the many achievements that make the "construction" possible. It will
indicate the necessity for all kinds of plans and measures. It has to
describe the capitalistic world as a source of all kinds of evil and also
as a form of society that is doomed to perish.
Communist literature stresses continually, and often with much
emphasis, the importance of propaganda. Lenin and Stalin have repeatedly
pointed out how important propaganda is for the Communist struggle.
Communists subdivide propaganda into two parts, one called propaganda itself,
and the othernagitation". They look upon the Communist party as the
vanguard of the working classes. In order to perform this taks well, the
leaders of the Party, ans especially the cadres, have to be well-versed in
Marxism-Leninism-Stalinism. This makes a thorough indoctrination necessary,
which the Communists call propaganda. Such an indoctrination is unnecessary
for the broad masses. They have to be influenced in such a way that they
will start to move under the direction of their vanguard, the Communist party.
The Communists call this influencing of the workers masses "agitation".
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"Communist propaganda is the thorough explanation of the doctrines of
Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin, of the history of the Bolshevist Party and
its present tasks... Communist propaganda arms the Party-leader with the
Marxist-Leninist theory, which deals with the laws of social development
and political struggle..." (Soviet Political Dictionary, 1947). "...the
propagandist, when he deals for example with the question of unemployment,
has to explain capitalistic crises, has to indicate the cause for their
inevitability in the present society and the necessity to convert this
society into a socialist one, etc. In so many words: he has to give
many ideas, so many that only comparatively few persons are able to absorb
all those ideas at the same time and in their full meaning." (Lenin,
Collected Works, Part II, page 93. "What to Do?")
The Communist party conveys by agitation its slogans and resolutions
to the greatest possible number of people, outlines the policies of the
Party and of the Soviet government and mobilizes all workers into active
participation:: in the establishment of Communism.
3. The Tactics of Communist Propaganda
As already explained in Chapter II, the final aim of propaganda is to
bring about actions by those concerned, actions desired by the propagandist.
It is self-evident that this applies also to Communist propaganda. For the
Communist propagandist the ideal situation is the one in which actions
conform completely to his desires. Such results cannot be obtained without
special measures.
An extreme example of a propaganda aiming at influencing the actions
and thoughts in complete conformity with the master's wishes is the
"brainwashing". This term is taken from the Chinese, where "hsi-nao"
literally means "washing of the brain". In order to attain this aim, a
psychological process is promoted that uses a number of special methods.
Among all those methods - partly directed against the body in order to
influence the mind- propaganda plays the most important role, because it
forms a new world of ideas after the old world has been broken up.
Some persons are of the opinion that the propagandistic treatment of
the people in countries under Communist contraol is not essentially
different from brainwashing. Terror replaces in those countries the
terrifying methods of brainwashing in its narrow sense, and the propa-
gandistic effort is stretched out over a longer period.
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In the non-Communist world, the element of coercion is not applicable,
therefore less rigorous methods have to be used to reach the target.
Communist propaganda attempts to appeal to the most basic human needs,
above all the need for security. Communist propaganda promises a future
in which everyone will receive according to his needs. The need for
security underlies the need for peace. Then there is the need for belonging
somewhere. Communist propaganda meets this "desire to belong" and thus to
escape loneliness. Communist propaganda attempts to have an answer for
questions about the meaning of life. It tries to imbue people with the
feeling that they can participate arii thus contribute to the development
of mankind. Communist propaganda banks also especially on the need for
aggression. The Communist language is rich in words and expressions that
indicate the qualities of the opponent, and propaganda usually makes lavish
use of them.
Columnist propaganda uses slogans abundantly. Agitation dn the
Communist sense is to a large degree propaganda by slogan. The slogan is
really a very short and powerful phrasing of a doctrine. While the doctrine
is directed toward reason, the slogan is used only for its emotional effect.
Often the slogan will consist only of one word. "Peace" is an example. It
is the formulation of the Communist peace doctrine Da one word. By the
propagandistic use of this word, the Communists attempt to awaken or
strengthen the human desire for peace and to create a prevailing opinion'
that Communism and peace are the same.
Communist propaganda is characterized by continual repetition. The
Communists know that the success of propaganda is largely determined by the
degree of repetition. When people are uninterruptedly subjected to a
certain type of propaganda ad live under conditions where they are left to
themselves without hope for help from the outside, then it becomes un-
avoidable that this propaganda, in the long run, will have some kind of
influence. Even under more favorable conditions, repeated propaganda will
have some influence. The saying that lies will be believed if they only
are repeated often enough has its origin in reality.
Communist propaganda readily uses strongly contrasting comparisons.
As a rule, the black and white method is being used. Essentially, this
presentation of things by exaggeration is a characteristic of the Communist
doctrine in all its parts. This propaganda is based on the opinion that
things should not be presented in their complexity, that nothing favorable
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should be said about the opponent, and that one has to exaggerate in order
to find a willing ear.
Communist propaganda is full of promise for all those who listen to
the voice of Communism and rich in threats for all those who do not. If
one follows the call of the warmongers, a terrible war, possibly leading to
the destruction of western civilization, will be the consequence. If one
follows the powers of peace, a happy future will open up.
Communist propaganda often combines the small problems with the big
ones. For example, at one and the same time it will agitate against bad
housing in some place and against atom bombs. This method fixes attention
upon a great evil by combining it with a local evil, for which there will
be interest under any circumstances. The feeling generated by the first
evil will awaken a corresponding feeling toward the second evil.
4. The Characteristics of Communist Propaganda
With respect to Communist propaganda, it is useful to differentiate
between the propaganda conducted in countries where Communism has come to
power and the propaganda in the free world. The propaganda in "capitalistic"
countries is mainly aimed at the breaking up of the capitalistic system,
i.e. the disinteration of the existing order. In countries where Communism
has come to power, propaganda is directed toward "construction of socialism"
and after that toward the "construction of Communism", in other words toward
the strengthening of an existing order. In the former case, propaganda
contains strongly destructive elements and in the latter constructive
elements. On the other hand, as far as propaganda is concerned, the
transition from the "capitalistic" phase to a "socialist" phase will not be
as difficult as it may appear at first glance, because Communist propaganda
under capitalism contains a strongly constructive element, i.e., insofar as
it is directed toward its awn movement. Furthermore, once the new situation
has been established, propaganda will not be able to do without the
destructive element, as long as there are "counter-revolutionary" forces
which aim at the destruction of the recently-established order and as long
as there remains a capitalistic outside world as a threat. Since this
paper deals with Communist propaanda in the framework of the cold war, we
shall in the following concentrate not so much on the propaganda in
countries where Communism has come to power but on the Communist propaganda
in the free world.
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Communist propaganda on the one hand is directed toward its own
followers, and on the other toward non-Communists. In so far as it
deals with its own movement, it will mainly lea& toward a deepening of
the understanding of Communist theory and practice, whereby the cadres
will become more capable to play a leading role (propaganda in the
Communist sense). Insofar as it deals with the remainder of its own
leaders, it likewise may have educational purposes, but in a much more
lim ted way. Often this propaganda will have only the purpose to start
a certain action (agitation in the Communist sense.) In general,
Communist propaganda In non-Communist countries has the following
characteristics:
1. The spreading of Communist ideology with the aim of obtaining
followers;
2. The attack on morale aimed at breaking the will to resist
Communist.
In the following, we shall especially stress the second point in
connection with the discussion of Communist propaganda in the framework
of the cold war. In its attempt directed against the defensive position
of the free world, Commun3sm for some time has conducted a propaganda
that apparently does not aim at intensifying conflicts among the free
world countries - mainly between the United States and the remainder of
the world - but etresses the promotion of a friendly attitude toward the
Soviet Union and the countries allied with it.
5. Communist Propaganda and the Undermining of Morale in the Free World
a. Intensification of Conflicts
The history of Communism is not lacking in statements concerning the
great importance of the conflicts within the capitalistic society and
the necessity to use then to the advantage of Communism. (We quoted a
statement by Molotov in this respect in Chapter I.) According to the
dialectic method of Communism, precisely these conflicts are the cause for
a trend toward general disintegration. These conflicts are described in
Stalin's Bases of Leninism as follows:
"The first conflict is the conflict between capital and labor.
Imperialism signifies the omnipotence of the monopolistic trusts and
cartels, of the banks and the finance oligarchy in industrial
countries. In the struggle against that omnipotence, the customary
methods of the working class - the trade unions and cooperatives, the
parliamentary parties and parliamentary struggle - are completely
insufficient. Surrender to capital, vegetate as before and fall down,
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or take up the new weapon - these are the choices which imperialism
places before the millions of the proletariat. Imperialism leads
the working classes toward revolution.
"The second conflict is the conflict between the different
financial groups and the different imperialist powers in their
struggle for raw materials and foreign territories. Imperialism
means export of capital to the countries possessing raw materials,
the fierce struggle for the ownership monopoly of raw materials,
the struggle for the re-division of the already-divided world,
and a battle of special grimness conducted by new finance groups
and powers, in search of 'a place under the sun', against the older
groups and powers which tenaciously hold on to their conquests.
This fierce struggle among the different groups of capitalists is
characterized by the fact that it includes, as an unavoidable
element, an imperialist was, a war for the conquest of foreign
territories. The situation is characterized by the fact that it
leads to the mutual weakening of the imperialists, to the weakening
fo the position of capitalism in general, to the approach of the
proletarian revolution and to the practical necessity for such a
revolution.
"The third conflict is the conflict between the handful of ruling
'civilized' nations and the millions of colonial and dependent
people of the world. Imperialism is the most unabashed exploitation
and the most inhumane suppression of the millions of people in the
large colonies and dependent countries. The obtaining of profits
is the aim of this exploitation and suppression. But while imperialism
is exploiting those countries, it has to construct railroads, erect
factories and plants, and establish commercial centers. The formation
of a class of proletarians, the development of a local intelligentsia,
the awakening of national consciousness, the strengthening of a
liberation movement, all that is the unavoidable result of that
policy. The strengthening of the revolutionary movement in all
colonies and dependent countries without exception, proves that very
clearly. This situation is of special importance for the proletariat
since it undermines thoroughly the positions of capitalism, trans-
forming the colonies and dependent areas from reserves of imperialism
into reserves for the proletarian revolotion."
(Stalin, Bases of Leninism,
Pegasus Publishers, Amsterdam,
1946, p. 5)
This was written by Stalin in 1924. In the meantime, the face of the
world has changed somewhat. However, according to the Communist doctrine
the conflicts remained the same and can be described as follows:
According to the Communists, the conflict between capital and labor
can never be eliminated. An elimination cadonly be achieved in a situation
where the means of production are no longer in the hands of capitalists.
As long as the capitalists own the means of production, nothing essential
will change. The workers may receive higher wages and better social
security, they may have a voice in all kinds of matters dealing with
production, but fundamentally their relation to the means of production
has not changes, i.e., they do not own the means of production. In dis-
cussing the conflicts that are still existing in this area, the Communists
have recently stressed the phenomenon of "relative pauperization". This
concept is nothing new in Comrrunist theory and has been used as proof that
the pauperization outlined by Marx as a part of capitalistic society is a
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reality. The theory amounts to about the following: the living standard
increases, but the development of society has created so many new needs
that can be well-satisfied by the rich people (who have received much
larger increases of income than the poor), but not by the poor, so that
with the latter the feeling of paverty increases despite an absolute
increase in the standard of living. The increased post-war welfare in
the different capitalistic countries is interpreted by the Communists as
"relative pauperization" of the workers who do not share to the same
degree in the increased wealth as the "capitalists". According to the
Communists, this means also that such an increase in wealth does not
eliminate the conflict between capital and labor. In connection with the
conflict between capitalists and workers, the Communists readily point to
"human dignity" 2 which, in their opinion, constantly suffers due to this
conflict. In the same way that the consciousness of the workers increases
with the social development, the workers should be treated accordingly with
more respect. Since the "capitalists" do not act accordingly, the conflict
between capital and labor is being intensified. Communist propaganda attempts
in every way to keep the notion of the conflict between capital and labor
alive. The struggle of Communism is presented as a fight for wage increases,
shorter working hours without loss in wages, and for lower prices or as a
struggle against unemployment and speed-up systems. After the last war,
the CommuniAs presented the class straggle in the capitalistic countries
as a battle of the capitalistic class, which is in the service of a
senseless rearmament, against a peace-loving Communist world and a working
class which does not want rearmament.
According to the Communists, the second conflict includes all the
conflicts existing among "capitalistic" countries. It includes the conflict
between the United States and the other Western powers, the conflict between
Germany and France, the conflict between small and big nations. There are
some Communists who no longer believe in those conflicts, but as we pointed
out in Chapter I, Stalin at the end of his life still believed so strongly
in those conflicts that he considered new wars among "capitalistic"
countries as a certainty. According to their doctrine of the dominating
tole of economic factors in the development of mankind, the Communists see
the conflicts in the ffestern world mainly from the economic viewpoint. They
believe that those conflicts have increased under the influence of the
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division of the world market into two parts:
while the world market was
formerly exclusively controlled by capitalism,there is now one part of
it in the hands of Communism. Communist propaganda stresses mainly one
conflict, that is the one between the United States and other nations. It
aims at forming a wedge between the United States and the rest of the world.
The United States has to be isolated so that the unity of the West will be
undermined. The propaganda must stress that the Communists strive for a
world in which true peace is reigning and that it is mainly the United
States which obstructs this aim.
The third conflict has in the meantime somewhat changed in character,
since many countries have become free areas. But according to the Communists
this has not eliminated the conflicts. They are stressing now the conflicts
between the Western countries and the underdeveloped countries (outside the
Communist world). These conflicts are a profitable target for Communist
propaganda. The many difficulties with which colonies and underdeveloped
countries are often beset are attributed to the imperialist nations of
the lest. Difficulties resulting from racial discrimination are to be
used by Communist propaganda for the intensification of conflicts.
Communist
propaganda hopes that finally the influence of the West will completely
disappear and be replaced by ties with the Communist countries, possibly
via neutralism.
b. Policy of Smiles
We have stated before that the intensification of conflicts has a great
effect on the disintegration of morale. This undermining of morale will
lead to a point where the will to resist is broken. Until 1955, the
Communists gave an important place in their propaganda to those conflicts.
In many cases they were mentioned outright, and the propaganda was as a
rule directly aimed at the intensification of conflicts. During 1955 a
clear shift of accent in their propaganda became apparent. The Geneva
conference of 1955 is a milestone in this development. Propaganda is
becoming increasingly an instrument of the so-called "policy of smiles",
into which an extreme intensification of conflicts does not fit. This
naturally does not mean that those conflicts are not considered important
any longer. Preference has been given to a propaganda which will have the
merit - in addition to other merits - of increasini:c.rt,air ccnflicts in
an indirect fashion. One of the most important advantages for Communism
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in this type of propaganda is the undermining of morale by the promotion
of a friendly attitude toward the Soviet Union and its allied countries In
such a way that a position of strength against the Soviet Union is
considered unnecessary. The New York Times of 30 October 1955 contains an
article by Thomas J. Hamilton, in which the author uses theAerninology of
Clausewitz to describe the policy of smiles as the "continuation of the
cold war with other means." If one looks at the history of Communist theory
and practice, one can not come to a different conclusion. Communism has
during its development assumed many different forms, but it always has
maintained the same basis and the same targets. The ways and means have not
always been the same, since they have always been adapted to new situations.
Noth:ng essential has been changed, as can be deduced from a statement made
by Khrushchev on 17 September 1955 on the occasion of a banquet honoring
Otto Grotewohl, in which he stressed that the smiles of the Soviet Union
in no way mean that Marxism-Leninism or the Communist way should be
abandoned. In order to determine what really is meant by the "policy of
smiles" one has also to consider what happens on the underground front.
The New York Times of 10 October 1955 reported that on 9 October Allen
Dulles, the head of the CIA, the American foreign intelligence service,
declar,x1 in an interview before several television stations that, despite
the Soviet smiles, subversive activities of the Soviet Union are continuing
unabated all over the world.
The policy of smiles thus attempts primarily to create a friendly
attitude toward the Soviet Union and its allied countries and. thereby
naturally also toward Communism. Communist cold war, as it has been
conducted after the last war, probably has not brought the expected results.
On the one hand, a few successes were obtained, but on the other hand the
free world igras strengthened politically, economically and militarily.
Communist strength increased in some areas, but in ethers it decreased
considerably. Even tough public opinion about the Soviet Union has
changed in the sense that is does not concentrate any longer exclusively
on suppression and. bad conditions in the social and economic fields but
considered also the better sides, still the success has not been great.
Therefore, another policy has to be followed, and its execution is in full
swing. The free-world attitude toward the Soviet Union and its allied
countries and toward Communism has to be changed. This attitude was mainly
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formed under the influence of an environment which was often anti-Communist.
The unfriendly actions of Communism in the framework of the cold war only
strengthened this attitude. The policy of smiles is an attack against that
attitude. One part of the propaganda will appeal to human needs which are
to form the basis for the new attitude: the need of security through
peace and of a world which develops prosperity; and the need of aggression
against those who frustrate the achievement of security and prosperity.
This propaganda is also mainly aimed at establishing an identification of
the satisfaction of the above needs with Communism. Another part of the
propaganda will be directed toward molding opinion and imparting infor-
mation that appears reliable, so as to counteract the anti-Commnist
attitude. A flood of ideas will be used to cause a change in the old
attitude. The two types of propaganda mentioned so far are direct. A
third type, which airs at the old attitude, is indirect; it works with
the effect of favorable experiences with Communists and Communist utterances
and accomplishments. All those types of propaganda can be combined in
different ways. A delegation from the free world visiting the Soviet Union
will be subjected to all three types of propaganda. The Soviet Union will
be pictured as a country that is directly advancing toward a society where
everybody receives according to his needs and where there will be no war.
All kinds of accomplishments of the Soviet Union, like big buildings,
collective farms, modern hospitals, etc., will be stressed. The delegation
will have all kinds of nice experiences with all kinds of nice people.
Two organizations arc the most important instruments of this policy
of smiles. One of themidentifies itself with "peace" activities, while
the other is concerned with the promotion of cultural relations between the
soviet Union and the rest of the world; they are the World Peace Council
and WOLZ respectively. The World Peace Council, established in 1948 as
"International Committee of Intellectuals for the Defense of Peace", has
grown into one of the most important auxiliary organizations of Communism.
Its influence is so very widespread, snce the "peace front" also includes
the activities of other international auxiliary organizations. The
organization is headed by a council, but the real leadership organ is the
"Permanent Executive Bureau% This bureau consists of about 50 leaders,
mainly Communists or pro-Communists. Among the leaders there are also
officials of other international auxiliary organizations. Important
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propaganda topics are: peaceful co-existence, a security system for Europe,
and the banning of atomic weapons. Other suggestions made in the frame-
work of peace propaganda are: United Nations membership for China; expansion
of East-West trade; and intensification of cultural relations. The great
power of the propaganda lies in its appeal to the desires of everybody.
This explains the influence of the peace movement which extends beyond the
Communist sphere, as evidenced by the national organizations in this field.
This expansion of influence is being promoted by the Communists by all
kinds of methods. They do it by furthering the peace propaganda of non-
Communist persons or movements. They atteTpt to coordinate the peace
propaganda of other groups and to align it with their awn cause. They aim
mainly at including in their organization non-Communists who, due to their
ability to conduct peace propaganda or due to their names, lend support to
the Communist peace propaganda,: The Communists are trying to hide the
fact that the organization in reality is Communist-directed. The great
importance of the peace movement for the policy of smiles is that in its
propaganda the Soviet Union and its allied countries are pictures as
peace-lovers "par excellence".
WOES is the Dutch transliteration of the opening letters of Russian
words which literally mean: All-Union Association for Cultural Relations
with Foreign Countries. This organization maintains close contact with
foreign associations which have the same purpose with respect to the USSR.
The importance of this instrument of propaganda is considerably increased
by organizations of countries allied with the Soviet Union which have a
common aim with respect to the non-Communist countries and the organizations
in the non-Communist countries which aim at the promotion of cultural
relations with other Communist countries. The WOKS is mainly acitve in th
fields of art, science and sports. Its most important function in this
respect is the sponsoring of delegations from and to the Soviet Union. The
Soviet organ Izvestya of 29 April 1955 contains an article by the vice-
chairman of WOKS. In it he stated that since the last war', due to the
sponsorship of WOKS, 296 delegations, consisting of more than 4,000 members
and representing 56 countries, visited the Soviet Union, and that during
the same period 181 delegations, comprising about 1,000 prominent Soviet
Scientists, writers and artists, were sent by WOKS to 27 foreign countries.
The number of delegations sent from and to the USSR under the sponsorship
of WOKS is only a fraction of the total number of delegations from and to
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other Communist countries.
A survey of the traffic of delegations shows clearly what an important
part they play in the policy of smiles.
6. Organization of Communist Propaganda
The heart of the propaganda organization of world communism is the
Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet
Union. The Secretariat has an appartus at its disposal that concerns
itself with the different areas in which the Central Committee is especially
interested. For this purpose there are several sections, one of which is
called "Propaganda and Agitation". In the Secretariat there is also a
"Foreign Countries" section. Mainly by those two sections, the rulers of
the Soviet Union direct Communist propaganda in their own country, in the
Satellite countries and in the nonCommunist world.
The internal propaganda is of extreme importance for the Soviet Union.
Without it, the "construction of socialism" and the "construction of
communism" is doomed to failure. Therefore, the propa:canda has to be such
that no important area remains uninfluenced. Its radius of activity
extends to the State, the Party, science, the arts and sports, and education.
The importance of Satellite countries with respect to propaganda is
two-fold. It consists of internal and external propaganda which is tuned
to the Soviet Union.
Since the Chinese Communist propaganda in most aspects corresponds
completely with that of the Soviet Union, one cannot, in this case, speak
of the director of it as one can of the Satellite countries. The direction
in Communist China is more in the nature of a guide which sets a good
example. China is beginning to play an ever-increasing role in Atia's
communism. Its propaganda already dominates the entire field of Commuzlist
propaganda in Asia.
An i-portant instrument in the propaganda of world communism is the
"Cominform". This organization was set up in Warsaw in September 1947. It
has informational and coordination functions with respect to a number of
Communist parties. Very little has been achieved, and one really cannot say
that the organization has political importance. Its value to Communitm
lies mainly in its propaganda function. It has to be considered as a
mouthpiece of the rulers of world communism. For this purpose an organ,
"For a Lasting Peace, for People's Democracy", is published in 18 languages.
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In it, Communists all over the world will find the ideological concepts of
the leadership of world communism, as applied to contemporary events. This
is done in the form of a number of articles by prominent Communist from
Communist and non-Communist countries.
The international auxiliary organizations paly an important part in the
propaganda of world communism. The propaganda emanating from these
organizations deals with practically all aspects of social life. Often
the propaganda of individual organizations has a common objective. Their
great importance lies also mainly in the fact that they have branches, in
the form of national organizations, in a great part of the world. There
are 11 of these organizations:
World Federation of Trade Unions;
World Federation of Democratic Youth;
International Union of Students;
Women's International Democratic Federation;
World Peace Movement;
International Federation of Resistance Fighters;
iiorld Federation of Scientific Workers;
International Association of Democratic Lawyers;
International Association of ComposErs and Musicologists;
International Association of Journalists;
International broadcasting Organizations;
have already dealt with the WOES.
Communist propaganda in the world is unthinkable without the partici-
pation of the national Communist parties. Their propaganda on the one hand
is directed at the promotion of communism in their Gun countries, and on the
other hand at the furthering of world. communism. If in some cases the
promotion of one excludes the other, preference will be given to the
promotion of world communism in the fashion prescribed by the Soviet leaders.
"Agitation and propaganda" is a part of every Communist party, from the
highest Party organs dawn to the lower echelons. The Communist party also
gives directives for the propaganda of its auxiliary organizations which are
partly influenced by the Party and partly by their international organizations.
The legations of Communist countries are likewise part of the propa-
ganda apparatus of world communism in that they give directives to the
Communst parties of the country involved or by carrying out propagand on
their own.
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7. Communist Propaganda Media
When one deals with propaganda media, one may use a very broad concept
and include organizations in it. Communist organization is likewise a
medium of propaganda and so are delegations, as described above. This type
of media has already been dealt with, therefore we will in the following
limit ourselves to (1) the spoken word; (2) the written word, and (3) the
motion picture.
The most important medium for world communism in spreading the spoken
word is the radio. The number of statics, broadcasting hours and the
number of languages broadcast is steadily increasing. This applies to
the Soviet Union, China, and the Satellite countries.
Communists give definite preference to the written word in propaganda
(in the Communist sense), as evidenced by the entry on propaganda contained
in the Russian political dictionary: "the press is the prihcipal and
decisive propaganda medium of Marxism-Leninism, since it makes it possible
that every truth becomes immediately the property of everybody. Spoken
propaganda is only an auxiliary medium of secondary rank. The most
important and basic method in the study of Marxism add Leninism is
independent reading of the works of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin."
According to the importance given by Communists to propaganda, It is
natural that a great number of books have been published. This applies
mainly to books which play a great role in indoctrination, such as The History
of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and Stalin's Bases of Leninism.
Extensive organizations in the Sviet Union are engaged in the publication
and translation of books for domestic and foreign consumption. In the
other Communist countries there are corresponding organizations which are
not quite as extensive as the ones in the Soviet Union. There are also
Communist publishing houses in many non-Communist countries.
TASS occupies a special place in Communist propaganda. This official
news service of the Soviet Union exercises an influence which goes far
beyond the confines of the Soviet Union. Practically the whole Communist
world receives its world itelliS from TASS. Furthermore, TABS supplies
information on the Soviet Union, which has been released for dissemination
to the world.
As has been said, the press plays a principal role in Communist propa-
ganda. The,nuedberThf newspapers published is very large. Soviet papers,
like Pravda and Kommunist (the theoretical Party organ), have an influence
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which reaches far beyond the borders.
Several newspapers are being published in the Soviet Union, which are
destined for propaganda abroad, such as Soviet Union, Soviet Woman, News
New Times, etc. Other Communist countries likewise have often a selection
of propaganda newspapers, likewise partly destined for abroad. We have
already mentioned the Cominform newspaper in another context. The inter-
national auxiliary organizations as well as their affiliated national
organizations also have their organs, often of different types. Communist
parties of some size have daily, weekly and monthly papers. And finally
there are also the "Information Bulletins" of the legations of Communist
countries.
Communists are placing increasing emphasis on motion pictures as a
propaganda medium. Direct and indirect propaganda movies are being produced.
The latter are those which attempt to create sympathies by their artistic
value and execution. The number of motion pictures produced by the Soviet
Union and other Communist countries is not yet very large, compared with
the free world countries, but there is a constant increase in number and
an improvement of quality, artistically as well as technically. For
example, recently several movies from Communist countries have received
prizes at international film festivals. In their attelpt to export
Communist movies to as many countries as possible, the Communists encounter
many difficulties. In many countries they cannot be shown and in other
countries this type of movie is held in low esteem. Even though motion
pictures are not a propaganda medium"par excellence" for Communism, they
will be used increasingly in the future with an increasing chance for
success.
CONCLUSION
This paper is an attempt to describe an important aspect of the war
conducted by Communism against the non-Communist world. This war will
end for Communism only after its rule has been firmly established all over
the world. Communism has in this battle several important advantages. In
the first place it has unity, even though it is partly an enforced unity.
This unity is expressed especially in the ideology which for communism has
not only doctrinary iMportance, but also is a belief and driving force.
Convinced Communists - and they are the leaders of communism - live in the
expectancy of a future worldwide Communist society. They live under the
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influence of a dynamic power which dominates their actions. Communism has
another advantage in the cold war. This advantage often is not recognized
by those against wham it is directed. Mostly because the term "war" does
not go further than the conventional term; under that terminology only hot
was is recognized as war. But there are also those who do not want to
recognize this type of warfare. They see its threat very well but are
attempting to avert it by placing it outside reality. There are also
those who see the Comnunist cold war very clearly, but who do no want to
talk or write about it, since they believe that by doing so they would
keep the idea of war alive and war would never come to an end. Recently
an opinion also has been expressed that the Communist rulers might change
their ideas. If that should one day really happen, it is reasoned, then
the representatives of the free world would be seriously hampered since
they are predisposed to look with distrust upon every action by Communism.
Therefore, the possibility of change has always to remain a factor to be
considered. Furthermore, it would be better to substitute the word
"vigilance" for "distrust". Communism is a threat to the free world, a
threat which, especially recently, has not been recognized as such.
Communism is intent on hiding this threat and sees even a chance in
wrapping it in a cover of friendliness. lath respect to this threat, the
free world needs vigilance. Vigilance is obtained by analysis of communism,
wherein one should not be led by emotions, which only cloucLao'clear,.*iew
of communism, but by rational observation which is not limited to a
definite time ad place but which encompasses all aspects of communism,
especially of communism as a complete system.
November 1955
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