Axis Sally was the generic nickname given to women radio personalities who broadcast English-language
propaganda on behalf of the European
Axis Powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. These included:
*
Mildred Gillars, a German-American who broadcast for Germany.
She was "the first woman in US history to be convicted of
treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
"
by the United States and "on 8 March 1949 was sentenced to ten to thirty years' imprisonment."
*
Rita Zucca, an Italian-American who broadcast for Italy
On their radio shows, the two Axis Sally personalities would typically alternate between
swing music and propaganda messages aimed at American troops. These messages would emphasize the value of surrender, stoke fears that soldiers' wives and girlfriends were cheating on them, and point out that the Axis powers knew their locations. American soldiers listened to Gillars' broadcasts for the entertaining music even as they found her attempts at propaganda "laughable."
See also
*
Lord Haw-Haw
Lord Haw-Haw was a nickname applied to William Joyce, who broadcast Nazi propaganda to the UK from Germany during the Second World War. The broadcasts opened with "Germany calling, Germany calling", spoken in an affected upper-class English acc ...
*
Tokyo Rose
Tokyo Rose (alternative spelling Tokio Rose) was a name given by Allied troops in the South Pacific during World War II to all female English-speaking radio broadcasters of Japanese propaganda. The programs were broadcast in the South Pacific ...
*
Constance Drexel
References
{{reflist
External links
*http://www.historynet.com/axis-sally.htm
*http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/on-this-day/March-April-08/On-this-day---Axis-Sally--Convicted-of-Treason.html
*http://factorialist.com/axis-sally-nazi-fame/
Nazi propaganda radio
German radio presenters
German women radio presenters
Italian radio presenters
Italian women radio presenters
Collective pseudonyms
Race-related controversies in radio
Nicknames
Nicknames in radio