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The Canadian Army, Public Relations, and War News During the Second World War

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The Canadian Army, Public Relations, and War News During the Second World War The Information Front: The Canadian Army, Public Relations, and War News during the Second World War By Timothy John Balzer B.R.E., Northwest Baptist Theological College, 1989 B.A., Trinity Western University, 1991 M.R.E., Trinity Western University, 1993 M.A., University of Victoria, 2004 A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History © Timothy John Balzer, 2009 University of Victoria All Rights Reserved. This Dissertation may not be reproduced in whole or in part by photocopying, or other means without the permission of the author. ISBN: 978-0-494-52939-3 ii The Information Front: The Canadian Army, Public Relations, and War News during the Second World War By Timothy John Balzer B.R.E., Northwest Baptist Theological College, 1989 B.A., Trinity Western University, 1991 M.R.E., Trinity Western University, 1993 M.A., University of Victoria, 2003 Supervisory Committee Dr. David Zimmerman, Supervisor (Department of History) Dr. Patricia E. Roy, Departmental Member (Professor Emeritus, Department of History) Dr. A. Perry Biddiscombe, Departmental Member (Department of History) Professor David Leach, Outside Member (Department of Writing) iii Supervisory Committee Dr. David Zimmerman, Supervisor (Department of History) Dr. Patricia A. Roy, Departmental Member (Professor Emeritus, Department of History) Dr. A. Perry Biddiscombe, Departmental Member (Department of History) Professor David Leach, Outside Member (Department of Writing) Abstract War news and public relations (PR) was a critical consideration for the Canadian Army during the Second World War. The Canadian Army developed its PR apparatus from nothing to an efficient publicity machine by war’s end, despite a series of growing pains. Canadian Military Headquarters in London appointed the first PR Officer, William Abel, in January 1940. PR services overseas grew along with the size of the army. The early days were marked by lack of coordination and often jurisdictional and personality conflicts between Abel and the other PR Officers and organizations. The 19 August 1942 Dieppe raid was the low point for both the accuracy of war news and Canadian PR involvement because Lord Mountbatten’s Combined Operations Headquarters minimized Canadian PR’s involvement in planning. This resulted in early portrayals of the raid as successful and the British censored a more honest explanation by the Canadian Army. The Sicilian and Italian campaigns provided a learning experience for the PR units. In Sicily, the news coverage of the Canadians was a public success, but PR had trouble with their allies in gaining national recognition and representation. Additionally, the question iv of correspondents’ priorities and delays getting to the front and transportation difficulties angered the press. Many of these problems continued in Italy until the appointment of Richard Malone, who enjoyed support from the politicians, press, and military. Applying the Mediterranean experience and participating in Allied publicity planning contributed to the excellence of Canadian PR during the Northwest Europe Campaign. PR maintained the confidence of the press while still controlling the correspondents. The army also largely overcame the temptation to censor bad news although this sometimes embarrassed Ottawa. Allied regulations sanitized war news preventing the reporting of the more disturbing aspects of war. Through censorship, the army exercised a great deal of control over the news media, yet this hegemony was incomplete because of need to keep the press friendly. Although a large sceptical minority remained, most Canadians considered their war news to be accurate. In sum, Canadian Army PR was generally successful, portraying the army positively and attracting media coverage. v Table of Contents Supervisory Page ii Abstract iii Table of Contents v Abbreviations vii Acknowledgements x Dedication xi Chapter One: Introduction 1 Part One: Canadian Army Public Relations 26 and War News in the Second World War Chapter Two: The Beginnings: The Growth of Canadian 26 Army PR and Policy September 1939 to June 1943 Chapter Three: Learning through Trial and Error: 62 Canadian Army PR in Sicily and Italy July 1943-June 1944 Chapter Four: The Publicity Machine: 83 The Northwest Europe Campaign and Beyond Part Two: Case Studies 137 Chapter Five: “Sugaring the Pill,” Selling Dieppe to Canadians 137 Chapter Six : Public Relations Triumph, Press Relations 178 Debacle: Canadian Army War News and the Invasion of Sicily Chapter Seven: Murder, Massacre and Friendly Fire: 233 Three Normandy Case Studies Chapter Eight: “We Regret to Inform you…”: Casualty 270 Notification and Publication during the Second World War Conclusion: Second World War Canadian Army 299 PR and War News Management Bibliography 334 vi Appendix One: PR Organization Chart 1943 347 Appendix Two: Hail the DADPR 349 vii Abbreviations AFHQ Allied Force Headquarters ADPR Assistant Deputy Director of Public Relations Air 2 Air Ministry and Ministry of Defence: Registered Files Air 16 Fighter Command: Registered Files Air 20 Air Ministry and Ministry of Defence: Papers accumulated by the Air Historical Branch AP Associated Press BUP British United Press CCO Chief of Combined Operations CMHQ Canadian Military Headquarters CP Canadian Press COHQ Combined Operations Headquarters CWRO Canadian War Records Office DADPR Deputy Assistant Director of Public Relations DDPR Deputy Director of Public Relations DEFE 2 Combined Operations Headquarters, and Ministry of Defence, Combined Operations Headquarters DND Department of National Defence DND DHH Department of National Defence, Directorate of History and Heritage DO General Records of the Dominions Office DPR Director of Public Relations viii FO 898 Political Warfare Executive and Foreign Office, Political Intelligence Department Papers GPO General Post Office HS 2 Ministry of Economic Warfare, Special Operations Executive and successors: Headquarters: Records INF 1 Ministry of Information: Files of Correspondence LAC Library and Archives Canada MoI Ministry of Information NA National Archives, United Kingdom NDHQ National Defence Headquarters NRMA National Resources Mobilization Act PWE Political Warfare Executive PR Public Relations PREM 3 Prime Minister's Office: Operational Correspondence and Papers PRO Public Relations Officer PSW Psychological Warfare RAF Royal Air Force RCAF Royal Canadian Air Force RCN Royal Canadian Navy RG 2 Privy Council Office Files RG 19 Department of Finance Files RG 24 Department of National Defence Files RG 25 External Affairs Files ix RG 36 Boards, Offices, and Commissions Files RG 41 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Files RG 44 Department of National War Services Files RN Royal Navy SHAEF Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force UP United Press WIB Wartime Information Board WO 204 and 228 Allied Forces, Mediterranean Theatre: Military Headquarters Papers WO 219 Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force: Military Headquarters Papers WO 229 War Office: Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force and 21 Army Group x Acknowledgements The research for this dissertation was funded in part by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Doctoral Fellowship. Many individuals are appreciated for their contributions to this dissertation. My committee members made many contributions guiding the editing of my drafts. My supervisor, Dr. Zimmerman was always encouraging and available to speak about my research and his suggestion to cut down the scope of research from all three armed services to only the army saved me probably a year of writing time. Besides her contributions as a committee member Dr. Patricia Roy provided invaluable assistance to the Dieppe chapter with her expertise at editing and suggestions about content. My SSHRC referees Dr. David Zimmerman and Dr. Eric Sager assisted me during the SSHRC application process and the Canadian taxpayers provided the funding that made much of this research possible. The Department of History at the University of Victoria also helped to finance my research through the awarding of a Doctoral Fellowship and research trip funding, I therefore thank the faculty, especially Dr. Elizabeth Vibert. Paul Marsden at the Library and Archives Canada assisted me in finding my bearings in RG 24 and guided me to important finding aids. Dr. Bob Bergen of the University of Calgary assisted me in locating the current regulations for war correspondents with the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan. David Halton graciously allowed me to access his father’s papers and provided me with notes on relevant topics from Matthew Halton’s private letters to his wife. He also alerted me to Bizimana’s recently published book. I took great joy in discussing the reporting of Canadian war news during the Second World War with someone who shares my interest and I gained an increased understanding of the relationships between and lifestyles of the Canadian war correspondents. I also greatly appreciate those who assisted me with accommodation during my research. Stephanie McDonnell and Chris Pollock helped me with accommodation in Ottawa for several research trips. David and Val Hayes generously hosted me in London making the cost of research in the United Kingdom much more reasonable. They also made me feel like one of their family while I was there. My father and stepmother John and Doreen Balzer, and in-laws David and Marge Mannings provided accommodation
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