Germany has slipped to 21st place in the Reporters Without Borders ranking for press freedom. Attacks on media workers during demonstrations are also to blame.
The world’s freedom of the press is in poor shape – at least that’s the conclusion reached by the organization “Reporters Without Borders”. The situation is more unstable than it has been for a long time. “Crises, wars, and the continuing spread of authoritarianism” are to blame. There is talk of a time of “anti-media agitation and disinformation”.
The suppression of independent reporting in Russia and mass arrests of media workers in Turkey are cited. But Germany is also mentioned as a negative example. The attacks against reporters on the fringes of demonstrations caused Germany to slip from 16th place last year to 21st place in the press freedom ranking.
Although the reason for this lies in the better performance of other countries, which are thus overtaking Germany – the number of attacks on journalists during demonstrations counted by “Reporters Without Borders” is 103 in 2022, higher than ever.
“Burst of the Conspiracy Theories”
Lutz Kinkel, Director of the European Center for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) in Leipzig, assesses the mood towards media professionals in Germany as conflicted. “On the one hand, the ‘lateral thinking’ demonstrations during the Covid pandemic created a very hostile climate for the press,” Kinkel said tagesschau.de. On the other hand, the pandemic also meant that people appreciated well-researched reports more again. “Because it became clear that information not only helps to understand the situation but also to protect oneself from health risks,” says Klinkel.
The ECPMF also documents attacks on media professionals. It initially registered a significant decline with the abating of the Pegida protests. “From 2020, however, the numbers went through the roof. The cause was the sheer mass of protests and so-called ‘walks’ during the Covid pandemic,” says Kinkel – according to the simple formula: the more protests, the more attacks.
Code of Conduct for Police and Media
“In addition, there was a conflagration of conspiracy theories,” says Kinkel. “Regardless of what they refer to, they all have one thing in common: the assumption that journalists do not report the truth.” This assumption breeds hatred.
To improve the security of journalists, Kinkel calls for more commitment from media companies to protect their staff. In addition, the conference of interior ministers should adopt the code of conduct for the police and media that the press council has presented. In addition, media workers should talk about what is happening to them. “Attacks and threats must not become the norm,” says Kinkel.
“With one’s back to the wall”
Sarah Ulrich is a freelance journalist. After an incident on November 7, 2020, she no longer accompanied extreme right-wing or conspiracy theory demos. At that time, she reported on a large “lateral thinking” demonstration with tens of thousands of participants in Leipzig, which resulted in massive violence against emergency services and media workers.
“The number of police officers on site was disproportionate compared to the number of demonstrators,” Ulrich recalled in an interview tagesschau.de. After the demonstration was broken up, the participants simply walked past the emergency services and continued the demonstration unannounced elsewhere.
She stood behind a police chain with several other journalists. “Then there was a violent breakthrough,” says Ulrich. According to Ulrich, demonstrators, including well-known neo-Nazis, ran towards them – “with bottles and fireworks”. “We had our backs to the wall,” says the freelance journalist. Even before that, the demonstrators had already taken action against the press. “Some colleagues were injured.”
Although Ulrich himself did not suffer any physical injuries, it was also an acutely dangerous situation for her. This also had an impact on how secure she felt on the job. “It became clear to me that I no longer wanted to put myself in these situations,” says Ulrich, “especially as a freelancer who has no direct protection from an editorial office.”
anti-press Narratives normalized
The violence at the demonstration in Leipzig was often discussed afterward – but it was not an isolated case, as “Reporters Without Borders” has now found again. “Last year, too, demonstrations were the most dangerous place for journalists,” says press officer Birger Schütz. Around 84 percent of the attacks were counted there.
The organization, like ECPMF director Kinkel, explains the increased number of attacks on the one hand with the ideological radicalization of parts of society. “For many, the attitude towards the press has continued to deteriorate since the beginning of the pandemic,” said Schütz. In addition, there is a growing willingness to use violence in the “lateral thinking” movement. Another point is that anti-press narratives are normalized in parts of society. For example, the term “lying press, ” originally from right-wing extremist circles, has become widespread.
A greater awareness in media houses and the police
“A look at other EU countries such as France, Italy, and the Netherlands shows that the attacks against journalists have decreased with the end of the demonstrations against the corona measures,” says Schütz. In Germany, on the other hand, extreme right-wing people and groups in particular continued to demonstrate and attack media workers. The focus of the demonstrations has shifted from the Corona measures to the Ukraine war.
To protect journalists, “Reporters Without Borders” is also calling for the police to be more aware of the problem. There is already movement, but some journalists still feel let down by the police and the judiciary. According to Reporters Without Borders, in almost a fifth of the cases, those affected stated that they were denied support, although emergency services were in the vicinity or were asked to intervene.
According to Schütz, media houses could also join the protection code for media workers. The code includes “a dozen practical measures, including permanent contact persons at employers and psychological and legal support for those affected”.
