Page "Why We Fight" Paragraph 28

The Why We Fight series became a heavily used means of presenting information about Axis powers for the American government during World War II.

General Surles, the director of the Department of War ’ s Bureau of Public Relations, had hoped that the series would be effective enough to allow similar kinds of army films to be shown to the general public.

Surles saw this goal realized when Prelude to War, the most successful of the seven films, was shown to President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Roosevelt saw this film as so important that he ordered it to be distributed in civilian arenas for public viewing.

However, some objections were raised against the Why We Fight series because it was so persuasive.

Lowell Mellett, the coordinator of government films and aide to Roosevelt, saw the films as dangerous.

He was most concerned with the effect the series would have after the war was over and the “ hysteria ” the films would create in their wake.

At least 54 million Americans had seen the series by the end of the war, and studies were done to gauge the impact of the films.

However, the results were inconclusive, and therefore the effectiveness of the series is still in question.