The Government controlled the images which people would see people not in a place were this was happening, this was all they could base there views so it worked it them such cases .The ministry of information was the main controller of things such as this at the time, they were set up due to the emergency powers act, they controlled things not just to make people believe what they wanted them to but also to act in a way they wanted them to.
Life portrayed by the newspapers and film reels was very different from the reality. They portrayed patriotic and heroic events, everyone mucking in together classes merging to help each other and such like. Where as in reality it was a very different set of events there were increased levels of crime and people would loot houses and shops of anything valuable.
Although the Government was trying to hide images of destruction and anything else negative from the general public. They did often show images every so often of destroyed buildings for example a picture showing a woman and child coming out of an Anderson Shelter unscathed while everything around them has been reduced to rubble. Here an exception has been made because it is probably trying to putting forward the message that the shelters the government have provided and prevent deaths, therefore encouraging people to use them. This was also one of Churchill’s specific examples of when a photo showing destruction could be used. An example of a photo depicting a patriotic act is a little boy putting a union jack flag in the middle of all the rubble. This image would have probably been shown as it showed this little boy still flying the flag and supporting the country even though his home has been destroyed.
One thing that was never was photos of bagged up bodies. This was never allowed as it would have shown people about the deaths and reinforeced the fact with a mental image of it that lots of people were dying. Another thing done was the use of royals and other famous figures to visit people badly affected although they were often badly received being jeered and booed at maybe due to the fact that people might have felt like being visited by them wasn’t actually going to help and they had to work also the fact that some for the could be held blame for the war.
All of this was trying to promote the idea now referred to as Blitz Spirit. Blitz Spirit is the idea that everyone pulled together and was cherry, optimistic and life carried on as normal. This was the main thing the Ministry of Information were trying to put forward through all the different forms of media that they had control of, to try and make people focus on this side of things.
Churchill set forward the main ways in which he wanted bad things to be reported “The press and broadcasting office should be asked to handle air raids in a cool way and on a diminishing tone of public interest. The facts should be chronicled without undue prominence to headlines.”
The word diminishing highlights the fact that he wants things to be made little of he also says they should be chronicled as in just listed not expanded upon, he also mentions that they should not been given much importance.
Another things to look at is clips from actually reports has them talking in a cheery voice maybe in an attempt if they sound cheery people will become more cheery to.
Although the government didn’t cover up the effects and still reported them, many people were angry as it seemed this way slightly, almost as if the hardships they were facing weren’t being recognized. As if they were trying to pretend it wasn’t happening at all and this had a negative effect as it made people angry at the government which is the last thing they wanted in a time like this.
In conclusion I can say that the most important reason they tried to cover it up was to keep the general populations morale up and although they did show images of destruction it was generally covered up, so they covered more up than what was allowed to be shown. I believe that this would have been a necessary thing to do at the time also due to the fact that there would have been spies so they can’t allow too much to be published.
By Rebecca Staple
