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Radio Londra 1943-1945: Italian society at the microphones of the BBC

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 December 2017

Ester Lo Biundo
Ester Lo Biundo*
Affiliation:
Department of History, University of Reading
*
*Email: esterlobiundo1@gmail.com
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Abstract

Propaganda from the BBC directed at Italy during the Second World War played a dual role. The ‘Radio Londra’ programmes, on the one hand a propaganda tool of the British government and on the other moral support to many Italians, are part of the cultural heritage of the war. This article explores what topics and types of programme were broadcast during the period of the Allied occupation of Italy (1943–1945) in order to engage the support of different social categories, including ordinary men and women, soldiers, factory workers, former Fascists, and intellectuals. The first part analyses some of the programmes in order to determine their propaganda strategies, while the second part focuses on the letters sent by listeners in Italy to the BBC broadcaster Colonel Stevens. It will be seen how both the use of cultural stereotypes and the attention to the detail of daily life for Italian civilians contributed to the success of the programmes.

Italian summary

La propaganda della BBC in Italia durante la seconda guerra mondiale giocò un ruolo ambivalente. Strumento propagandistico del governo inglese da un lato, e supporto morale per molti italiani dall’altro, i programmi di Radio Londra fanno parte dell’eredità culturale della seconda guerra mondiale. Scopo di questo saggio è comprendere che argomenti e tipo di programmi vennero trasmessi per intercettare il consenso di differenti categorie sociali nella fase dell’occupazione alleata dell’Italia (1943-45). Tra queste categorie donne e uomini comuni, soldati, operai, ex-fascisti, intellettuali. La prima parte del saggio analizza alcuni programmi per estrapolarne le strategie propagandistiche. La seconda parte si incentra invece sulle lettere inviate dagli ascoltatori in Italia al Colonnello Stevens, uno dei commentatori più popolari dell’Italian Service. Dal testo emergerà come l’uso di stereotipi culturali e l’attenzione a dettagli della vita quotidiana dei civili italiani contribuirono al successo dei programmi.

Keywords

BBC Italian Serviceradiowar propagandapopular culturecivilian living conditionsSecond World War
Type
Research Article
Information
Modern Italy , Volume 23 , Issue 1 , February 2018 , pp. 35 - 50
Copyright
© 2017 Association for the Study of Modern Italy 

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Fondo Paolo Treves (FPT), Fondazione di Studi Storici Filippo Turati (FFT), Florence.Google Scholar
Foreign Office (FO), National Archives (NA), London.Google Scholar

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