Originally founded in May 1925 as a platform to attack STREICHER's inner party rivals, the infamous weekly DER STÜRMER quickly became notorious. During the remaining years of the Weimar republic and throughout the twelve years of National Socialist rule (the last issue appeared in February 1945) DER STÜRMER was Germany's leading and most low-brow anti-Semitic newspaper. At the beginning, it was a local paper, but it quickly turned out to be successful nationwide. 25000 copies were sold at the time when HITLER came to power in 1933, but publication quickly rose and peaked at around 700000 in the late 1930ies. (During the war circulation figures went down dramatically due to paper shortages.) There were also thousands of elaborate display cases throughout Germany, each displaying the current issue.
Nine special editions (about topics like Jewish sex crimes, Jewish conspiracy, ritual murder, Jews in Czechoslowakia and Austria, and ritual murder) were published, with up to 2 million issues printed of each. The newspaper's appeal was also not limited to Germany:
"New outrages from the Stuermer were regularly denounced by the world press. But there were many who looked on Streicher's work more sympathetically. A single issue in 1935 contained replies to readers in Greece, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, England, Australia, and the United States. Photographs of foreign readers were printed regularly. In the United States, Nazi organisations mailed copies to those interested. Even those unable to read German could absorb much of Streicher's message by looking at the cartoons and photographs. Branch offices of the Stuermer were opened in Vienna, Prague, and Strasbourg once Nazi armies had marched in, and a Danish edition was attempted in 1941." (p. 172)
In addition to his editorship and his duties as Gauleiter of Franconia STREICHER also published illustrated anti-Semitic children books, a short lived anti-Semitic medical journal and even academic books.
The focus of the book under review is an analysis of the publication history and the content of the weekly, and not so much a biography of STREICHER, who by all accounts was a rather unpleasant man. Born on 12 February 1885 in a small village near Augsburg in Bavaria, Julius STREICHER was a school teacher by trade and a highly decorated veteran of world war 1. While he was politically active before the war in mainstream avenues, he embraced anti-Semitism by 1919. According to BYTWERK (p. 8) it is not exactly known why. (I wonder whether the numerous communist uprisings (Berlin, Munich, Hungary, among others) usually lead by Jews, would have had anything to do with it?)
Anyway, thus began his infamous political career, which led him to be editor of his newspaper and Gauleiter (local nazi party leader) of Franconia. He beat up political opponents with a whip, was sexually insatiable and embezzled funds that should have gone to Reich accounts.
Being an early party member, already involved in the 1923 Munich beer hall coup, and because of his loyalty and propagandistic efforts, HITLER long protected him, but could not help him in the long run.
The account of the intrigues that led to STREICHER's downfall as Gauleiter of Franconia following a party trial in February 1940 (he remained editior of his weekly) makes particular interesting reading. (STREICHER even ordered one of his accomplices to commit suicide! The man complied.)
BYTWERK has obviously put much effort in his book, analysing every aspect of the Stuermer newspaper, from the crude caricatures by cartoonist "Fips" (Philippe RUPPRECHT, who ironically originally worked for a Social Democrat newspaper) to various changes in the focus of reporting reflecting political changes and the infamous pillory column, introduced in 1933. Fanatical readers often sent in letters denouncing
Germans who e.g. did their shopping in Jewish shops, dated Jews or made business deals with them, accompanyied with addresses and pictures. (Occassionally whole photo essays were provided).
I have some issues with the book despite the interesting subject (there are very few books about STREICHER available). Firstly, there are some translation issues. For instance the names of two fringe groups STREICHER briefly belonged to following the ban of the Nazi party after the failed coup are not provided in English. (I am native speaker of German, but the book was written for an English speaking audience in the first place.) Secondly, there are some misleading explanations. Of the first radical party STREICHER joined, the German Socialist Party, author BYTWERK writes, "it was despite its name a right-wing group holding many of the traditional values that Streicher supported" (p. 9), while a more accurate description would be a folkish socialist political party. The American church that reprinted the ritual murder special edition in 1976 is indeed "an anti-Semitic organisation", but it is apparently also a Christian Identity group.
Thirdly and more importantly the book tends very much toward political correctness and the usual German bashing, the afterword with author BYTWERK speaking out against GOLDHAGEN's view regarding German eliminatory anti-Semitism notwithstanding.
Without wanting to play devil's advocate it is evident to me that author BYTWERK did not devote much space for arguments in STREICHER's favour at the Nurmberg military tribunal (e.g. that many of his anti-Jewish attacks in his newspaper were in response to foreign threats of annihilation of Germany etc.)
The book is profusely illustrated and also has three sample Stuermer articles (one of them incomplete) and two tales from the children book THE POISONOUS MUSHROOM.
Recommended for anyone interested in analysis of propaganda, but be aware of the shortcomings.
