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Jan Uelzmann
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Journal Articles
Publisher: Journals Gateway
Journal of Cold War Studies (2020) 22 (2): 133–162.
Published: 01 May 2020
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Konrad Adenauer's government in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) engaged in a large-scale media campaign to create political consent for the FRG's integration into the West, a policy that rested to a large extent on rearmament and entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. To counter public criticism of rearmament, the West German authorities used Mobilwerbung, a company that maintained a fleet of mobile film screening vans. Clandestinely financed by the government, Mobilwerbung brought government-commissioned films and political speakers into the FRG's remotest areas. Based on archival records on deployments in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, this article traces Mobilwerbung's role as a government unit that reacted dynamically to competing events. Through highly detailed reporting on audience reactions, Mobilwerbung served both as a public relations vehicle to foster consent and as an analytical tool that allowed the mapping of public sentiment regarding rearmament.