I'm going to simply name the Fourteen Principles of Fascism that have popped up on the Internet, line by line, and then state how each applies to Superman before 1960.
1. Powerful and Continuing NationalismYes, Superman qualifies. You could argue the extent to which this was true, but Superman after Pearl Harbor was a nationalist. You can see the change in the Fleischer cartoons, and in the comics around that time. The line from the Adventures of Superman TV show was "Truth, Justice, and the American Way."
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human RightsAbsolutely not. In the Superman Radio Show, Superman exposed and combatted the KKK. In the 1940 Look Magazine story "Superman ends the War" even showed Superman hauling Hitler and Stalin to Geneva and found guilty of crimes against humanity...this before US involvement in the war.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying CauseNo. Other than the "Jap" comments that happened, Superman was portrayed during this time as the "champion of the oppressed." Superman often defended the very scapegoats that fascists...well, scapegoated.
4. Supremacy of the MilitaryNo. As stated earlier, in "Superman Ends the War" he took Hitler and Stalin to Geneva for "History's Greatest Crime- Unprovoked aggression against defenseless countries."
5. Rampant SexismSuperman worked alongside Lois Lane at the Daily Planet, never insisting that she stay at home and wash the dishes. On the contrary, he was quite intrigued with her.
6. Controlled Mass MediaWell, Superman did conquer the media, I'll give him that.
And even in his stories, he had a lot of control over the workings of the Daily Planet/ Daily Star... fascist!
7. Obsession with National SecurityOnly in the WWII period, where I'll again point out that he fought
against fascists.
8. Religion and Government are IntertwinedNope. Though Superman was a product of the values of his Jewish creators, his Jewishness was never brought up. He did encounter Santa Claus in 1941, but St. Nicholas is hardly a shining example of anything relating to Christianity.
9. Corporate Power is Protected No! A product of the Depression, Superman put corporatists in jail.
10. Labor Power is SuppressedNo evidence of this. Most early Superman stories involved him helping "the oppressed."
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the ArtsSuperman stories were a very intellectual piece of art....and the most recognized science fiction story to ever come from the U.S. While many of his early foes were scientists, that is because they were respected enough to present real challenges to Superman's abilities.
12. Obsession with Crime and PunishmentI'll give you that one.
13. Rampant Cronyism and CorruptionNope, he fought it. This was the Great Depression, after all.
14. Fraudulent ElectionsI'm not sure if Superman was ever directly involved in helping a President until President Kennedy...however, he never supported fraudulent elections, or any type of fraud at all.
So, Superman is 3/14 fascist, if you count that joke about his media job. More often, he actually fought
against fascists.