Norway: A Case Study in Demand, Diversity and Adaptation

What happened to newspapers as a vehicle for communication in just one occupied European country during the Second World War? Challenging existing scholarly assumptions that local newspapers’ efforts were mainly centred, at least in the UK, on morale building and survival throughout the extensive periods of bombing, this chapter uses the example of Norway to examine the growth and diversity of journalism in occupied Europe, especially of clandestine anti-Nazi publications combined with the dangers involved in the act of deception. The chapter draws on a range of Norwegian experiences to examine the effect of occupation on journalistic voices. The aim is not to trace the chronological history of the Norwegian press—but to argue that Churchill’s delays when it came to invading (to liberate Norway from German occupation) had the effect of strengthening demand for allied news, which could only be provided in newspaper form by a clandestine press. Hence, the focus of this chapter is on press diversity, evidenced especially by resistance print communications. This may provide insights into more lasting trends in journalism history from a ‘bottom up’ standpoint, for the illegal press can provide examples of the democratisation of communications in the context of deception and secrecy. The trajectory of newspapers also demonstrates that, as radio broadcasts prompted newspaper publication of the speeches as transcriptions, the relationship between the two platforms became more compatible and synergistic.