Was the antisemitic propaganda a catalyst for tensions in the Slovak-Jewish relations?

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe aim of the paper is to rethink the efficacy of the antisemitic propaganda and its role for the political regime of the Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party in Slovakia, in particular with reference to the period of 1938–42. An analysis of specific media campaigns, covering the Aryanization process or the 1938 and 1942 deportations, explores various strategies and methods used by the Propaganda Office. The article also evaluates the alleged pressure of Nazi Germany on the institutionalization and everyday practices of journalists and propagandists in Slovakia. Wartime antisemitic propaganda was systematically aiming at the Slovak majority society, even though studies by other authors have doubted its impact on the public opinion.