...because somebody talked!
Painting of a cocker spaniel resting its chin on a folded sailor's collar draped over a chair, under a service banner with a gold star, with the caption '...because somebody talked!'. The gold star signals a death in service, and the caption attributes it to careless speech: a grief-based fear-appeal.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1944
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Office of War Information (issuing agencies); Wesley (signature)
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- Home front, Security and surveillance
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
Office of War Information. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-227 (NAID 513669).
Text on the object
...because somebody talked! [signature:] WESLEY '43 [imprint:] U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1944—O—579038 [imprint:] Distributed for the issuing agencies by the Office of War Information
