PROPAGANDA

UNDER STALIN

Purpose of Stalins
propaganda machine:
1. to reinforce a belief in the achievements of

the Soviet government and Stalin

2. to create a personality cult- Make him a
demi-god to the people
3. to compare Stalin with the state and its
people so that any criticism of him could be
seen as anti-Soviet and, therefore, treason

Promotion of Communist Ideas

Socialist realism show

Soviet life in a positive

light & promote hope
in communist future.
Pro Communism

Replaced religion with

communist ideas.
Stalin replaced
religious icons.
Karl Marx was idolized

The Cult of Personality

After Lenins death

his image appeared

everywhere in
posters, lm, and
statues
Stalin promoted a
cult so people would
associate him with
Lenin
The Lenin personality
cult made it easier for
Stalin to create one
around himself.

 A huge picture of Stalin

hangs over Red Square

in Moscow as if by
magic. In fact, it is
suspended by a balloon
and then lit by
searchlights.
Stalin is the Lenin of
today

Linking Stalin to the State or

People
Stalin liked to be
portrayed as the
friend of the
workers.
Russification
making a
nationality's
culture more
Russian.

 Stalin was often

portrayed with
peasants, children,
and workers

Made him one with

the people so it was

dicult to criticize
him

Methods available for this

included:

State-controlled youth organizations

Education
The media
The arts and popular culture

Youth Organizations
Young people were

encouraged to report
members of their own
families to the
authorities for anti-
Soviet views

One boy, Morozov, reported his

father who was then jailed.
When the boy was murdered by
members of his own family, he
was made a martyr and hero by
the state.

EDUCATION
Textbooks presented

Stalins view of the

Communist party and
the Revolution.
By 1939 94% of those
town-dwellers under 49
were literate; 86% in the
countryside.

A poster from 1920: You may as well

be blind as illiterate. The Bolsheviks
believed that illiteracy had been a key
factor in maintaining the power of the
tsars.

The Media
All media were controlled by the government
Pravda was the paper of the Communist Party
Izvestiya was the paper of the Soviets
Radio stations conveyed the ocial party view

Art and Popular Culture

The experimental art

of the early 1920s was

abandoned and
replaced by Socialist
realism; this was seen
in all forms of culture
art, cinema, literature.
Socialist realism
inspire the population
to work harder.

A typical painting in the style of socialist

realism. Stalin is shown amongst the
workers, urging them to meet their
production targets. The workers look on,
impressed.

CONCLUSION
Propaganda was skilfully developed to bring

about a signicant degree of genuine popular

support for the regime. Terror alone would never
have been enough to secure that degree of
support.

Lets look at our notes- Where would the poster best fit?

a) Promotion of Communist ideas
b) Cult of Personality
c) Linking Stalin to the State and its people

What evidence do you see to support your claim based on your
notes?