Television Under the Swastika (Sub)
starring: Albert Speer, Robert Ley, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Goebbels
directed by: Michael Klof
directed by: Michael Klof
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Product Description:
Legend has it that the triumphant march of television began in the United States in the 1950's, but in reality its origins hark back much further. Nazi leaders, determined to beat Great Britain and the U.S. to be the world's first television broadcaster, began Greater German Television in March 1935. German viewers enjoyed their TV broadcasts until September 1944, as Allied troops closed in. Making use of 285 reels of film discoveredin the catacombs of the Berlin Federal Film Archive, "Television Under the Swastika" is a fascinating look at the world's first television broadcast network. It explores both the technology behind this new medium and the programming the Nazis chose to put on it. "Television Under the Swastika" is required viewing for anyone interested in the history of television, the intersection of media and propaganda, and the inside story of Nazi Germany.
Legend has it that the triumphant march of television began in the United States in the 1950's, but in reality its origins hark back much further. Nazi leaders, determined to beat Great Britain and the U.S. to be the world's first television broadcaster, began Greater German Television in March 1935. German viewers enjoyed their TV broadcasts until September 1944, as Allied troops closed in. Making use of 285 reels of film discoveredin the catacombs of the Berlin Federal Film Archive, "Television Under the Swastika" is a fascinating look at the world's first television broadcast network. It explores both the technology behind this new medium and the programming the Nazis chose to put on it. "Television Under the Swastika" is required viewing for anyone interested in the history of television, the intersection of media and propaganda, and the inside story of Nazi Germany.
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- A Certain Weirdness
An interesting docu of a little known phenomenon in which propaganda and entertainment were meshed into TV shows that seem quite ludicrous today, but which were probably well received in 1930's Germany.Technological advancement at a time of world upheaval and impending chaos.
Rating: 
- This is not PBS....
In March, 1935, the Greater German Television started broadcasting and didn't stop until around September 1944.As you can guess some of it was propaganda, racial messages and news about the party.But what they also show is sports, cooking shows, a behind the scenes look as a hairdresser school and other shows that make you wonder if they had any idea what to do with the strange box.In fact, because of the cost, they could not reach the wider public like they could with radio or the movies. ... Read More
Rating: - Nazi TV way back when
I thought this DVD, (Television Under the Swastika) was very well handled. My only real complaint was that it was not anywhere near long enough! They had thousands of feet of film to possibly use, so I think that cutting all down to about an hour is just too much! The quality of what they did use was great, and the narration was very good. It was good of them to include English sub-titles so we could actually understand what was being said. I recommend it, though it could have been a lot longer.
Rating: - Before Roger Ailes, Karl Rove and Fox News Channel; before bin Laden and al Zawraa; there was Joseph Goebbels and Third Reich TV
The phenomenon of the far right using television as a propaganda tool did not begin with Roger Ailes and his Fox "News" Channel; 24-hr anti-American/anti-Semitic television did not begin with al Qaeda and the al Zawraa network; the idea of using a full-time government propaganda minister did not begin with the Bush Administration's use of Karl Rove. As early as the 1930s, Adolph Hitler and his Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, took a nascent, inchoate technology ... Read More
Rating: - The Birth of Television
"Television Under the Swastika"
The Birth of Television
Amos Lassen
Many of us believe that television began here in the United States in the 1950's but the truth is that its origins began further back. German leaders were determined to beat England and the United States began Greater German Television in 1935.
Michael Kloft uses 225 reels of film which were found in the Federal Film Archive in Germany to fashion his documentary, "Television Under the Swastika", ... Read More
- A Certain WeirdnessAn interesting docu of a little known phenomenon in which propaganda and entertainment were meshed into TV shows that seem quite ludicrous today, but which were probably well received in 1930's Germany.Technological advancement at a time of world upheaval and impending chaos.
- This is not PBS....In March, 1935, the Greater German Television started broadcasting and didn't stop until around September 1944.As you can guess some of it was propaganda, racial messages and news about the party.But what they also show is sports, cooking shows, a behind the scenes look as a hairdresser school and other shows that make you wonder if they had any idea what to do with the strange box.In fact, because of the cost, they could not reach the wider public like they could with radio or the movies. ... Read More
- Nazi TV way back whenI thought this DVD, (Television Under the Swastika) was very well handled. My only real complaint was that it was not anywhere near long enough! They had thousands of feet of film to possibly use, so I think that cutting all down to about an hour is just too much! The quality of what they did use was great, and the narration was very good. It was good of them to include English sub-titles so we could actually understand what was being said. I recommend it, though it could have been a lot longer.
- Before Roger Ailes, Karl Rove and Fox News Channel; before bin Laden and al Zawraa; there was Joseph Goebbels and Third Reich TVThe phenomenon of the far right using television as a propaganda tool did not begin with Roger Ailes and his Fox "News" Channel; 24-hr anti-American/anti-Semitic television did not begin with al Qaeda and the al Zawraa network; the idea of using a full-time government propaganda minister did not begin with the Bush Administration's use of Karl Rove. As early as the 1930s, Adolph Hitler and his Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, took a nascent, inchoate technology ... Read More
- The Birth of Television"Television Under the Swastika"
The Birth of Television
Amos Lassen
Many of us believe that television began here in the United States in the 1950's but the truth is that its origins began further back. German leaders were determined to beat England and the United States began Greater German Television in 1935.
Michael Kloft uses 225 reels of film which were found in the Federal Film Archive in Germany to fashion his documentary, "Television Under the Swastika", ... Read More
