Le Courrier de l'Air
Le Courrier de l'Air was apropaganda newspaper in French distributedas a flyer during the First World War . It wasprintedin London anddropped fromfree-floating paper balloons filled with hydrogen on the Western Front over France and Belgium . The newspaper was the product of a division of the British Military Intelligence Service known as MI7b . The first issue appeared on April 6, 1917. A propaganda magazine of the same name was also usedby the British against Germany during the Second World War .
The aim of the newspaper was to give the residents of the occupied territories precise information about the course of the war from an Allied perspective. In addition, texts were printed from documents that were suppressed by the German side because they had left a negative impression, such as reports on German defeats and losses. This was also intended to result in indoctrination of German soldiers from the front. The average number of copies of the newspaper delivered each week was 5,000.
The newspapers were initially bundled in 100 pieces and then attached to a kind of fuse attached to the balloon at small intervals . Before releasing the balloons, the fuse was ignited, which then slowly burned down. Little by little the individual fastenings of the bundles came loose and more and more newspapers were released. In this way, about 2000 copies could be distributed across the country within about 30 minutes. Two trucks had previously brought the balloons with the propaganda material to a convenient location that had been selected after consulting a meteorologist . If the wind was blowing in the direction of Belgium or France, the magazine Le Courrier de l'Air was added to the balloon, if it was blowing in the direction of Germany, propaganda leaflets for the enemy troops were attached.
The content of the newspaper essentially comprised four main topics. The first was to comment on current events before they were forgotten. Secondly, matters relating to Germany, the enemy of the war, were dealt with, such as criticism from German newspapers. Thirdly, bizarre and comical stories were spread about the Germans, in particular describing their weaknesses and allegedly immoral actions. They also made fun of German institutions and war regulations. Finally, there were editorials on topical issues that were taken from major newspapers or by the editorial team. All articles were initially prepared in English and then translated into French.
The newspaper Le Courrier de l'Air , like other British propaganda material, is considered a very successful measure to strengthen the morale of the population in the occupied territories or to attack that of the German soldiers. In the last two months of the war in particular, German newspapers constantly reported on the “poisoned arrows from the air”, as the propaganda papers were called. On November 2, 1918, an extract from a letter in the Cologne Official Gazette was published in all the London newspapers . In it, a senior German official complained about the enemy propaganda: " What caused the greatest damage was the paperwork of our enemies, who inundated us with several hundred thousand leaflets every day, presented and processed exceptionally well ." The German side tried hard in the last months of the war rigorous penalties to prevent the newspaper from spreading. For example, if the newspaper was owned or news from this newspaper were distributed, a fine of 10,000 marks was imposed in addition to a one-year prison sentence.
The last official edition of the newspaper appeared on November 7, 1918 and was number 78.
A complete set of all issues (No. 1 - No. 78) is now in the British Museum in London.
Web links
Remarks
- ↑ PsyWar.Org - PsyWar Leaflet Archive - No Code, Le Courrier de l'Air, 6 avril 1917, No. 1 - A NOS LECTEURS. Retrieved June 1, 2019 (UK English).
- ↑ ALLIED PSYOP of WWI. Retrieved June 2, 2019 .
- ↑ ALLIED PSYOP of WWI. Retrieved June 2, 2019 .
- ↑ ALLIED PSYOP of WWI. Retrieved June 2, 2019 .