What Were We Watching? Americans’ Responses to Nazism through Cinema, Radio, and Media

Stories about World War II and the persecution of Europe’s Jews were a constant presence 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 and persecution of Europe’s Jews, 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
David Weinstein, PhD, Author of The Eddie Cantor Story: A Jewish Life in Performance and Politics and contributor to “Why Sarnoff Slept: NBC and the Holocaust”*

Moderator
Rick Hirsch, Managing Editor, Miami Herald

Join the conversation online using #USHMM #AskWhy #BeMDC

This program is free and open to the public but reservations are required. 

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, 98­-116. Berkeley: University of California Press.}