When people think of propaganda they think of posters that display wartime effort and encourage support for the war. “Rosie the Riveter” is a famous poster and icon that comes to minds when people think of propaganda. And while they increasingly turned to modern technological mediums like radio and television to transmit their messages, it was the propaganda poster that was the most effective tool of governments to inform, seduce, and cajole their populations. (Toptenz). Posters were created for the idea of rationing, war bonds, and women in the workforce, victory gardens, war efforts, and patriotism. “Many posters were circulated urging increased production and labor as well as conservation of materials for the war effort.”(ThinkQuest). The slogan “loose lips sink ships,” was very popular during the war and it was used as a way to keep people quiet and not give important information to the enemy. Soldiers who wrote home to their families had to be careful of what they wrote in their letters because it could fall into the hands of the wrong people. Soldiers and sailors often cope with the long periods of inactivity that come with military life by being notorious gossips. Unfortunately, most military plans rely on secrecy. (Toptenz). Uncle Sam was an important icon during the war effort, “The stern, paternal face of the national icon Uncle Sam seems to be staring right into your soul, no matter which way you look at the poster. The appeal to honor and duty, not to mention the slightly sinister undertone, was enough to convince countless men to willingly sign up for a tour in Hell." This was a prominent piece of propaganda and it was very helpful and useful for recruiting men to join the war. The difference between propaganda in the United States and other countries is that American tried to keep their posters positive and promote positive beliefs and messages for the people. (Toptenz).
"Throwing in an extra charge"
This poster appeared in the Chicago Tribune the morning of December 8, 1941 after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This poster was created to encourage Americans to fight back and give them a sense of anger and hatred toward the Japanese. The gun in this photo shows Americans that they should use their imdustrial powers to fight against and defeat the Japanese. This poster also shows doom and foreshadows death amongst the Japanese. (Pavia, 1994, 676). This poster was created by Casey Orr.
Rationing
The government started to ration goods such as milk, sugar, eggs, cheese, coffee, and meats as a way to support the war effort. The government also urged citizens to create their own “victory gardens,” where they would grow their own fruits and vegetables because the labor and transportation shortages made it hard to move these products into the markets. There were also various posters that stated “Plant a Victory Garden: Our food is fighting,” or showed pictures of people gardening and rationing their food to encourage people to do this for the war effort. War Bonds allowed for everyday Americans to invest in the war effort by purchasing bonds that would go up in value over time. (The National WWII Museum).
Also during the war, cars and driving were both things added to the governments list of things to ration; Advertisements and government propaganda conflated car ownership with citizenship and portrayed driving as integral to the American way of life. Government propaganda promoting car sharing programs encouraged Americans to identify driving with freedom and to see car-sharing as the best way to preserve this freedom during the war. Gasoline was rationed as well but it was important that people conserve their gas because the soldiers needed gas to fuel their tanks and aircrafts. (Frohardt 2012)
Also during the war, cars and driving were both things added to the governments list of things to ration; Advertisements and government propaganda conflated car ownership with citizenship and portrayed driving as integral to the American way of life. Government propaganda promoting car sharing programs encouraged Americans to identify driving with freedom and to see car-sharing as the best way to preserve this freedom during the war. Gasoline was rationed as well but it was important that people conserve their gas because the soldiers needed gas to fuel their tanks and aircrafts. (Frohardt 2012)