Historical+Investigation--+Michael+Rogers

A. Plan of Investigation  To what extent did newspapers in the United States, West Germany, and the USSR affect public opinion of the Berlin Wall in 1963, 1973, and 1989? This investigation will center around what kind of impact the media had, if any, on the Berlin Wall. For background information textbooks and other secondary sources were utilized. The rest of the sources were from newspapers from West Germany, the U.S.S.R, and the United States.   B. Summary of Evidence  After the fall of the Axis powers in 1945, Germany was split up into four parts: one each for the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In addition, the City of Berlin, because it was the capital of Germany, was split into four parts, one for each of the countries. While the U.K, U.S.A, and France combined their respective territories, the U.S.S.R. kept their territory, and formed a separate socialist state, the German Democratic Republic (GDR)1. The country formed by the other three was the Federal Republic of Germany, which was to be a capitalist states, as opposed to the socialist GDR. The separation of the German State was a point of contention between the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R, and indeed, the Cold War. Each believed the other side was keeping Germany from reunification, but neither would make compromises in order to achieve it2.  On August 13, 1961, the Berlin Wall began construction. On September 15 of that year, //Die Zeit//, a prominent West German Newspaper, released an article detailing and interview with Franz Eckhart, who spent months traveling through East Berlin. He explained what the Wall was, and what it would mean for West Germany. After traveling through East Germany, he notes in the interview the lack of freedom East Germans have, and the unhappiness he saw while he was there3. He describes the constant presence of East-German Police, for example, "[a]n der Ecke Heidelberger-Bouchestraße befindet sich ein kleiner Kinderspielplatz. ... Hinter dem Draht Polizei, Polizei, ... [mit] Maschinenpistolen. Ein Mannschaftswagen der Grenzer rollt langsam hinter dem Draht entlang" (At the corner of Heidelberger-Bouche Street there was a small children's playground. ... Behind the wire were Police, police, ... [with] machine-guns. A police-wagon rolled along behind the wire) 4.  In 1962, East Germany released a brochure explaining to her citizens what the wall is and why it was built. It explains 10 different points about the Berlin Wall (including whether the wall was a threat, and who was aggravating the situation) 5. "The wall says to the war-mongers: He who lives on an island should not make an enemy of the ocean... [Recognize ... reality]. don’t join in the row over the wall... come to an agreement jointly to refrain from doing anything that leads to war and do everything that serves peace?" 6 The brochure goes into detail about "Bonn propaganda," referring to the German city of Bonn.  Tensions heightened over the next couple decades, and on April 6, 1979, //Die Zeit// released another article, //Die Mauer Muss Weg// (The Wall Must Go), arguing and appealing to the masses to speak out against the Berlin Wall, sayinG, "Die Mauer ist mit dem Geist des Grundvertrages unvereinbar" (The Wall is not in line with the basic Rights of the people) 7. On November 9, 1989, the separation of East and West Germany ended, and the Berlin Wall was eventually torn down.  C. Evaluation of Sources <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> **<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Background, Bias, and Beauty **<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Origin: Frederick Taylor published this book in 2006. He was a British Historian which studied at Oxford University and Sussex University. He traveled widely in both parts of divided Germany at the height of the Cold War. An author as well as a translator, Taylor wrote this book to be the first comprehensive account of a divided city and its people. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Purpose: As an accomplished Historian, one of his purposes in writing this book was no doubt to provide a detailed and analyzed account of the Soviet’s Experiment in Berlin. However, it is true that most if not all people who intend to publish a book think at one time or another about their commission, and whether or not the authenticity or bias of this source comes into question because of money should not be ignored. It is also possible if not probable that Mr. Frederick considered this book as an addition to not only his expertise, but also his legacy. What kind of bias this may or may not have is not clear, but it is noteworthy. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Value: Not only does this source provide an excellent account of the events that took place in Berlin (both East and West) from 1961-1989, it explains in full the events leading up to the Soviet’s Project, beginning with the development of Prussia and, excluding all information about the Berlin Wall, ending with the social, political, and economic conditions of Germany a fifteen years after the second World War. This tireless attention to detail not only adds to Mr. Taylor’s credibility as an author, but also provides useful historical reference on which can be formed a more accurate analysis of the facts. The most value of this source is that it gives background information on the research topic. Even though the source is not specifically relevant to the research question, its historical information is necessary to form an unbiased opinion of the events that unfolded in Berlin from 1961-1989, which is imperative for one to objectively analyze the media, which are traditionally biased. To a lesser extent, this source sets a tone for the era in which the events take place. It provides historical context for the other sources. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Limitations: Because of his education and background, Frederick Taylor, as a historian, is not a novice in any sense of the word. His extensive traveling to East and West Germany during the height of the Cold War give him the experience he needed to write the book. However, because he was so close to the action, and because he was there himself //in medias res//, the source has the danger of being less factual and more anecdotal in tone. While this tone makes the source more interesting, and an anecdotal tone has no direct effect on the accuracy of the book, there is a fine line between Histories and Historical-Fictions that Mr. Taylor seems to be toeing. On a completely different note, Frederick Taylor, as an Englishman, has a likelihood of being slightly biased against Central and Eastern European countries; his notability as a Historian minimizes this bias by a considerable amount both in magnitude and quantity. It is clear, in fact, by the tone of the source, that Mr. Taylor is doing his very best to remain un-biased. Therefore, although his objectivity is clearly a high priority for Mr. Taylor, it is nonetheless called into question. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> **<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Man, the Plan, and the Berlin Wall **<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Origin: In 1961, a book was published by Eckhart Kroneberg in West Germany. This article is a primary source detailing Mr. Kroneberg’s experiences as a West Berliner. An almost scientific report, this article is a condensed version of his book, outlining the most important events he either witnessed or in which he participated. Eckhart Kroneberg is a historical novelist and journal-style novelist who won the Juilius Campe Prize in 1961 (a German literary prize). <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Purpose: The purpose of this article is to detail Kroneberg’s experiences in West Germany during the early stages of the isolation of Berlin. There was probably a motive to make money by writing of course, but this article was not written to become a historical document, but rather to be published in //Die Zeit//, a prominent German Newspaper. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Value: Because this article was first published in a newspaper, there had to a limit on how long it was. The length of this certainly limits the value it holds. Kroneberg had to cut out the majority of his book, and only snippets were published in the article. It is still valuable because it’s representative of the mood of West Germans about the Berlin Wall. It also provides historical context for later events regarding the Berlin Wall. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Limitations: The bias of a Western German about the Soviet Union’s occupation is in fact not a limitation, because bias about the Berlin wall is what this investigation is focusing on. The true limitations come from the credibility of the author, who has won prestigious awards, written numerous books and articles, and was himself in Germany during the Berlin Crisis. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
 * 1) <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Taylor, Frederick. //The Berlin Wall: A World Divided, 1961-1989//. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2006. Print.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19px;">ibid.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19px;">Kroneberg, Eckhart. “Beschreibung Einer Mauer.” //Die Zeit// 15 Sept. 1961. Web.
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19px;">ibid.
 * 5) __<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What You Should Know About The Wall __<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">. East Berlin: German Government, 1961. Calvin Online Education. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">[].
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19px;">ibid.


 * 1) <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">K.J. “Die Mauer Muss We <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">g.” // Die Zeit // 6 Apr. 1979. Web.