THE NAZI CENSORSHIP OUTSIDE GERMANY
[To the Editor of THE SPECTATOR.]
Sm,—The article " The Nazi Censorship Outside Germany " has been read with considerable interest in this country. I do not know which nationality your anonymous correspondent possesses, but I can hardly think that he is a Norwegian. His views may be correct as regards conditions in Denmark and Sweden, but his generalisations in the concluding paragraph do not hold as regards Norway.
No Norwegian will subscribe to the view that " newspaper- readers now know even less of what goes on in Germany than they used to," and that " they are gradually getting a more favourable impression of Herr Hitler and his works." The average intelligent adult newspaper-reader is in a position to know a very great deal of what goes on, generally speaking quite as much as the average reader in, say, Great Britain and France. It is true that no Norwegian daily has a permanent correspondent in Germany, and the reason is that hardly any Norwegian journalist would be tolerated by Dr. Goebbels' propaganda department. But the views expressed by the great international news-agencies and by the independent British and American journalists are cited—moreover, a fair quantity of the more enlightened sections of the public read British newspapers regularly, whereas the German papers are losing their circulation, the papers being more or less unintelligible to -the average Norwegian mind (and not because of the language !). The general impression might be recorded, that the German points of view are losing their supporters, mainly as a reaction to the Jew-baiting and similar happenings. To a Norwegian it does not read sense, that " British news is seen through Nazi eyes."
The views expressed by your correspondent concerning Danish and Swedish newspapers are probably correct, though it seems a gross understatement to say that " Except for one or two courageous newspapers the Press is beginning to display a caution in dealing with German affairs, &c." In this con- nexion it is worth while to record that the Swedish Foreign Minister, Dr. Sandler, gave a warning the other day to his compatriots that any economic and other pressure by Germany must be withstood.—I am, Sir, yours very sincerely,
Sirilund, Vettakollen, near Oslo, Norway. PER VOGT.
Previous page
