The stranger from the front page. Photography as a carrier of persuasion in the press of “People's Poland” ("Odra" 1945–1950)

Abstract

Press photography was a tool of propaganda in the Polish People's Republic. However, the period itself was not at all homogeneous, and the introduction of the Leninist model of the press in Poland was preceded by several years of planning. In addition to the propaganda and agitation press, there were also non-Marxist magazines, such as Odra in Katowice. The extent of their liberty shrank over time. This is evidenced by, among other aspects, photographs: next to labor leaders, cartoonish images of Germans were published, being an element of the anti-German discourse serving to justify forced expulsions. In the article, the author investigates the functioning of photography in the pages of a magazine gradually succumbing to the pressure of propaganda.