Television Under the Swastika

By Cyril Pearl -- Video Business, 8/25/2008

FIRST RUN
Available now
> Fascinating compilation and analysis of rarely-seen Nazi TV broadcasts.

Nazi leaders began the world’s first TV broadcast network, Greater German Television, in March 1935. Essentially unseen since their initial broadcast, 285 reels of German TV film were discovered in a Berlin archive and are compiled and utilized to document this fascinating era, which lasted until 1944. Most remarkable is how little programming has changed over the decades—the Nazi TV archive includes sports, vaudeville acts such as singers, cooking shows, teleplays and other familiar forms. Filled with pro-Germany zeal and undisguised anti-semitism, the material doesn’t have the polish of Leni Riefenstahl’s feature films and weekly newsreels, but that’s part of the point. This evil propaganda was low-tech, unsophisticated and often quite silly. That said, when Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels foresees a “charmed future for the new medium,” it comes off like a punchline.

Shelf Talk: This latest entry in First Run’s ongoing series of Nazi-themed documentaries joins such other respected titles as The Goebbels Experiment and The Reich Underground (both of which were written by Television director Michael Kloft. Certainly the educational and library market will be interested in this one, but good word of mouth could also open up the doors to TV types (both professionals and fans) who may be curious to see the historical power of broadcasting’s dark side.

Documentary, color and B&W, NR (mature themes and images), 52 min., DVD $24.95
Extras: WWII film gallery
Director: Michael Kloft
First Run: German TV, 1999