What Were We Watching? American Media Through 1930-40s

Stories about World War II and the persecution of Europe’s Jews were portrayed in American movie theaters and living rooms throughout the 1930–40s. Award-winning films such as Mrs. Miniver, The Great Dictator,and Casablanca shaped Americans’ understanding of the Nazi threat, while newsreels and radio programs offered a brief glimpse into world events and the range of opinions on the war effort. Join us to learn how Hollywood and leaders in entertainment and government battled for the hearts and minds of Americans.

Speakers
Daniel Greene, PhD, Historian and Curator, Americans and the Holocaust, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

David Weinstein, PhD, Author, The Eddie Cantor Story: A Jewish Life in Performance and Politics, and Contributor, “Why Sarnoff Slept: NBC and the Holocaust”*

Moderator
Michèle Taylor, Board Member, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, and Former Member, United States Holocaust Memorial Council

For more information, please contact the Museum’s Southeast Regional Office at southeast@ushmm.org or 561.995.6773.

*Weinstein, David. 2007. “Why Sarnoff Slept: NBC and the Holocaust.” In NBC: America’s Network, edited by Michele Hilmes, 98­116. Berkeley: University of California Press.