"Allied and German propaganda in Argentina during the First World War"

MARÍA INÉS TATO

Canterbury (virtual)

Conferencia; Conference Propaganda and neutrality: alternative battlegrounds and active deflection; 2021

Centre for the History of War, Media and Society de la University of Kent, Institute of Historical Research in London and the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

As a global conflict, the First WorldWar was fought in and from differentworld locations and at different levels,including the symbolic one. Propaganda was a crucial resource used by thewarring nations to lure the support of the neutrals, perceived as essentialfactors for the war effort.             Thispaper aims to analyse Allied and Germanpropaganda disseminated in Argentina during the conflict in their differentformats (writings, cinema, photographs, etc.), considering their main argumentsand strategies. Argentina was one of the six Latin American countries thatremained neutral during the entire war, despite internal and externalpressures. Given the historical, cultural, economic, and demographic ties withEurope, Argentine society was particularly shaken by the war, which led to astrong economic, cultural, political, and even military mobilization.   The Britishgovernment produced most of the Allied propaganda distributed in this countrythrough Wellington House. In contrast, the other Allied powers contributed tothat activity to a lesser extent. On itspart, most of the German propagandamaterials were produced locally. In bothcases, the European communities established in this migration country played akey part in the diffusion of propaganda aimed at Argentine society to influencepublic opinion and the government. The importance of the Argentine case lies inthe strategic role played by this country in the dissemination of European newsand propaganda to the Southern Cone,regardless of its origin.            Ingeneral, both warring sides circulatedpropaganda based on a core of universal topics, but also produced contents designed explicitly for particular localaudiences. The paper will deal with both types of materials: those addressed togeneral audiences and those that tried toconnect propaganda to the local cultural codes.