Consent & Control Flashcards
1
Q
How was the press controlled and censored in Fascist Italy?
A
- Decrees in 1923 and 1925 became official laws in 1926, gave powers to replace editors and shut down unfavorable work
- Left wing papers were shut down, journalists forced to join fascist unions
- Independent papers existed but had strict guidelines
2
Q
How successful was press control and censorship?
A
- Created self-censorship as editors were fearful of the consequences and loosing jobs
- Fascist newspaper had smaller circulation of 100,000 compared to 600,000 for the Vatican paper
- Hard for Italians to seek alternatives, only fascist view
3
Q
What was propaganda like in Fascist Italy?
A
- Focused on bringing Italians together, historic destiny
- The Cult of Ancient Rome celebrated being the heirs to the greatest empire, medieval buildings destroyed to show Roman ruins, e.g. Via dei Fori Imperiali
- Mussolini called the heir of Augustus
- Focus on sport, Italy won World Cup in 1934 & 1938
4
Q
How successful was propaganda?
A
- Modern mediums like film not fully exploited
- Lack of mass media in the South, extent of which Italian attitudes changed is questionable
- Winning of sport titles demonstrated re-found greatness and fulfilment of destiny
5
Q
What was the cult of Il Duce?
A
- Image created via the media showing Mussolini as a leader of immense ability leading Italy to greatness
- ‘Mussolini is always right’ used as a slogan, 30 million pictures up around Italy in 2,500 different poses, showed as a strong sportsman but also family man
6
Q
How successful was the cult of Il Duce?
A
- Duality of pictures appealed to everyone
- Mussolini stood above where party or fascism failed
- Focused on him rather than the ideology, created more the idea of ‘Mussolinism’, fears that fascism could die alongside him
- Mussolini believed in it himself
7
Q
What was the Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro?
A
- 1925, replaced socialist worker reaction & welfare schemes
- Provided variety of social activities like bars, films, sport matches and plays at a clubhouse
- Provided level of social insurance, excursions and holidays for almost nothing, 4 million members by 1939
8
Q
How successful was the Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro?
A
- 80% of state and private sector salary workers were part of it, 40% of industrial workers
- People joined just for the activities, none had any direct promotion of fascism or the ideology
- Brought support via the masses, could argue they intentionally left out ideology for this reason
9
Q
How did fascist culture influence people in Italy?
A
- Laws in 1925-26 made all art sustain fascist myth
- Architecture modelled on neo-classical Roman style
- Films like Julius Ceaser and Pilot created to promote fascism, Mussolini credited as creating them
- National Institute of Fascist Culture set up in 1926
10
Q
How successful was fascist culture?
A
- 87% of box office takings from Hollywood films
- Organisation of artists efficient in controlling what was produced, although never focused on a coherent idea
11
Q
How was the youth controlled in Fascist Italy?
A
- Balilla set up for children aged 8-14, restructured in 1934 to have 3 parts: Figli Della Lupa, Balilla and Avangaurdisti
- All other youth groups, except the Church banned
- Ministry of National Education set up in 1929, oversaw the Balilla
- Boys played sport, trained to be soldiers, girls taught gymnastics and lessons on motherhood
- Schools taught how fascism had saved Italy, the poor treatment in WW1 and the historic destiny
12
Q
How successful was the indoctrination of the youth?
A
- Joined due to social occasions provided, not beliefs
- South, lack of education and more children in work meant less take up on activities
- Divide with enjoyment between the boys and girls, they wanted more fun and less mother lessons
- Most loyal soldiers of WW2 were youth, however so were the partisan groups
13
Q
What repression and terror was there in Fascist Italy?
A
- MVSN, 50,000 armed militia beat up selected victims
- 400 people killed by the state for political reasons, opponents forced into internal exile
- OVRA had networks of informants and agents
- 21,000 people tried with summary justice, 3/4 acquitted, average sentence was 5 years
14
Q
What were the anti-Semitic decrees introduced in 1937?
A
- Little to no focus on race from fascism before 1935, Mussolini even had a Jewish mistress
- Laws forbid Jews from marrying Italians, foreign Jews deported, Jewish students expelled
- Could not work in public sector jobs
15
Q
Why were the anti-Semitic decrees introduced and what effect did they have?
A
- Influence from other right-wing European countries, e.g. Germany, Hungary and Romania
- Tried to form national identity, believed the decrees would make people see their racial superiority
- Laws resented by most Italians, chose to ignore
- Condemned by the Church, Pope saw as copying
