Chairwoman of the RBB Broadcasting Council resigns
“The savings are immense and then the executive floor really enjoys it”
“They call it target bonuses. At the end of the day, Schlesinger got something on top of the salary,” says Kayhan Özgenc, editor-in-chief of Business Insider, on the Schlesinger case. In the WELT interview, he reveals what his team found out about the previously secret bonus system for RBB executives.
The affair surrounding the recalled RBB director Patricia Schlesinger has further personal consequences: Friederike von Kirchbach, chairwoman of the RBB broadcasting council, resigns from her position. Meanwhile, the director of Bavarian Radio is venting her anger at Schlesinger’s cause.
Dhe Chairwoman of the RBB Broadcasting Council, Friederike von Kirchbach, is resigning with immediate effect in view of the crisis at the public ARD broadcaster. The 67-year-old said in a statement on Saturday. There is now another personal consequence in the affair about allegations of nepotism against the recalled director Patricia Schlesinger.
Von Kirchbach said: “RBB is about to make a new start. After ten years as Chair of the Broadcasting Council, I would like to make a contribution and make my position available.” With the dismissal of Schlesinger as artistic director, the committee cleared the way for new structures and people in the ARD broadcaster. “For everything that comes now, I see new people in charge, so I’m resigning,” it said.
At the same time, she emphasized that the current debate about the RBB and the public service system should not be about people, for her the matter is in the foreground. “This includes the self-critical examination of our work in the Broadcasting Council in the past. It is important to me that I started this discussion.” On the other hand, she is not willing to have her professional integrity as a pastor and pastor called into question, this is happening publicly and is unacceptable to her.
Friederike von Kirchbach, Chairwoman of the RBB Broadcasting Council, during a press conference on the affair surrounding the recalled Artistic Director Schlesinger
Source: dpa/Gerald Matzka
Von Kirchbach has chaired the supervisory body since 2013 and has been a member since 2007. The deputy chairman of the Broadcasting Council, Dieter Pienkny, will take over the official business on an interim basis for the time being.
The Broadcasting Council is one of the control bodies in the public broadcaster, it keeps an eye on the program work. The committee also elects the director. On Monday, the members of the Broadcasting Council recalled Schlesinger. The Board of Directors, as the second control body, is now dealing with the specific termination of the contract.
“Stunned and angry”
The director of Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), Katja Wildermuth, expressed concern about the effects of the Schlesinger affair. The incidents overshadowed the work of the public service broadcaster and made them “a bit stunned and angry,” said Schlesinger at the weekend in the “BR24 media magazine”. “In any case, it is a one-time event on ARD. And it shocks us all, all of us as co-artistic directors as well.”
At the same time, however, we know from independent surveys that there is a high level of consensus in society in favor of public broadcasting. Quality journalism is more important than ever, especially in times of crisis, and the best remedy against disinformation, said Wildermuth.
Responsible handling of people’s broadcasting fees is particularly important. “This is money that has been entrusted to us by the contributors. And we have to deal with it with great responsibility,” said Wildermuth.
Katja Wildermuth, Director General of Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), in an archive photo from 2020
Source: dpa/Lino Mirgeler
In the RBB affair, additional performance-related funds for executives have also come under criticism. Wildermuth said for her own house: “I can say very clearly: No, that doesn’t exist. We have no performance-related remuneration for managers at Bayerischer Rundfunk.”
The BR is constantly evaluating its processes and had already improved its rules in early summer before the allegations against Schlesinger became known, the director emphasized. For example, the four-eyes principle was intensified in contracts with external partners and the rules for compliance with applicable guidelines were supplemented and modified. Wildermuth said that business trips and hospitality by the directorship hardly took place in the middle of the pandemic due to her taking office in February 2021.
After taking office, she only had a sofa and two tables replaced in her office and bought a floor lamp and a bright BR logo for video conferences. “Status symbols have become obsolete,” said the director. The image of an aloof management that is not accessible to the employees also comes from the 20th century. When she visits other BR locations, she sometimes sits down with her laptop in any free space and works there, she said.
RBB director Schlesinger resigned on August 7 because of allegations of nepotism, taking advantage and waste. The RBB Broadcasting Council called her off with immediate effect. In the meantime, the public prosecutor’s office is investigating the ex-director.