"Der Panzerbaer".
Final edition of "Der Panzerbaer", ("Fighting newspaper for the Defenders of Greater Berlin", if I understand the subtitle correctly), April 29, 1945. This remarkable newspaper was produced by the Ullstein publishing house between 23 and 29 April, 1945, and distributed to Berlin's hapless population and defenders with the exhortation, "read it and pass it on". The paper, in the main, contained brief reports of the "successes" of Berlin's defenders, attempts to associate Berlin's struggle with the fate of Europe (in the face of the Bolshevik monster), contained within an indefinable (but definitely detectable) sense of the desirability of the Nazi "Gotterdammerung". In the past, it has been asserted that the initiative to produce this small-format propaganda newspaper came from Dr Goebbels; well, perhaps, but some recent researches have produced little evidence of this (Goebbels undoubtedly had other things on his mind by late-April, 1945). Equally, there is no doubt whatsoever that it would not have been produced without some initiative from Goebbels' Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda. Perhaps the most extraordinary thing about it was that it was produced at a time at which the roar of Russian guns could clearly be heard throughout the city and, indeed, at which Soviet shells were falling in profusion in the city. As a bureaucrat, I find it hard not, at a certain level, to admire the mad dedication of the Propaganda Ministry in continuing to churn out delusional, dishonest "news", even as Zhukov's tanks were crunching through the suburbs. Self-delusion, perhaps, had taken over completely at this stage. Best regards, JR.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://ww2incolor.com/gallery/art/52091/%22der-panzerbaer%22.