Enlisted in the army in 1939, he took part in fights near Beuvraignes during the Battle of France in 1940, before voting for the law that gave full powers ("pleins pouvoirs") to Philippe Pétain on July, 10 of the same year. On 6 October 1940, in charge of "applying the instructions of the armistice commission", he confirmed the interdiction of movies like "The Great Illusion" or "Entente cordiale", accused of "incitement to hatred against Germany". Tixier-Vignancour served as the under-Secretary of State for Information under Nazi-collaborationist Vichy France and as director of Pétain’s "Propaganda Committee". As the head of Radio-Vichy, he offered a large broadcast time to collaborationist Marcel Déat.