Radio and the Performance of Government : Broadcasting by the Czechoslovaks in Exile in London, 1939-1945 / Erica Harrison.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Harrison, Erica, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Radio broadcasting--Great Britain.

Radio broadcasting.

World War, 1939-1945--Radio broadcasting and the war.

World War, 1939-1945.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (273 pages)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Prague, Czech Republic : Karolinum Press, [2023]

Summary:

Throughout the Second World War, the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile broadcast over the BBC from London, hoping to reach out to their former compatriots living in a divided and occupied Europe. As the only way of projecting their authority, President Beneš and his colleagues relied on the radio as a stage on which to perform as the government they wished to be, representing a Czechoslovak state they hoped to recreate after the war. Despite a ban on listening to foreign broadcasts in the German-occupied Protectorate and Slovakia, many tuned in to hear ‘London calling’ and the broadcasts provided the strongest connection between the London Czechoslovaks and the audience at home. This work examines this government programme for the first time, making use of previously unstudied archival sources to examine how the exiles understood their mission and how their propaganda work was shaped by both British and Soviet influences. This study assesses the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the government’s radio propaganda as they navigated the complexities of exile, with chapters examining how they used the radio to establish their own authority, how they understood the past and future of a Czechoslovak nation, and how they struggled to include Slovakia and Subcarpathian Ruthenia within it.

Contents:

Cover

Contents

Acknowledgements

List of Abbreviations

Introduction

Czechoslovakia: "The Child of Propaganda"

Radio: The Ideal Medium for Exile

Less Trouble than the Rest: The Czechoslovak Government within the British Propaganda Structure

Scope and Sources

Chapter One: "Legal, loyal, and internationally recognised": Legitimacy and the Performance of Government

"In the name of the Czechoslovak Republic": The Authority of Legality

"We are the Masaryk nation": The Authority of Tradition

"We are close together at heart": The Authority of Charisma

Exercising Authority: The odsun and "Rabble-rousing"from London

Chapter Two: Populating the "Free Republic": Performing Nationhood over the Radio

Radio as a Medium for Nation-Building

"Faithful to the spirit of our history": Reading the War into the National Narrative

"Anything that is dear to their hearts": The Mobilisation of Culture

Chapter Three: Idiots and Traitors? Addressing Slovakia from London

"The admirable and loyal Czechoslovak nation"

"Do not betray yourselves": A Policy of Negative Propaganda

Chapter Four: "We will manage our own affairs": The Soviet Union and Broadcasting the Future of Czechoslovakia

Neither Hell nor Paradise: 1940 to June 1941

"Our Brother Slavs": June 1941 to 1943

When Propaganda Diverges from Policy: Mid-1943 Onwards

Conclusions

Bibliography of Sources

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Description based on print version record.

Other Format:

Print version: Harrison, Erica Radio and the Performance of Government

ISBN:

9788024655222

8024655225

OCLC:

1498754615