fact finder podcast
The killing of a 20-year-old in Idar-Oberstein by a mask opponent shook many people. In the fact finder podcast experts Anetta Kahane and Miro Dittrich explain why disinformation and conspiracy myths can lead to such acts.
How could the crime in Idar-Oberstein come about, where a man shot a 20-year-old in a gas station because he was supposed to be wearing a mask? Analyst Miro Dittrich identified and evaluated the alleged perpetrator’s Twitter profile. In the fact finder podcast he reports on the findings.
Accordingly, the alleged perpetrator had spread right-wing extremist conspiracy stories there and also expressed violent fantasies. It is remarkable that the man had already said this before the pandemic. It is a person who has been in a world full of conspiracy stories for a long time.
Alternative realities in the digital space
This makes it clear that there are consequences when people slip into alternative realities in the digital space, says Dittrich: “These are very often characterized by an impending downfall”, by ideas that one would live in a dictatorship and that there were no democratic ones at all more opportunities to do something about it.
If you now look at what Idar-Oberstein did, it was actually just a matter of the man wearing a mask for a short time – which cannot be a rational reason to attack a person. However, due to these alternative realities that the person had been in for so long, this conclusion seemed correct.
Stochastic Terrorism
Anetta Kahane from the Amadeu Antonio Foundation has herself been threatened for years. There have already been plans for attacks on her by right-wing extremists, and her name is on numerous “enemy lists”. Kahane speaks of a stochastic terrorism in the violent act in Idar-Oberstein. This means that this results from a heated mood that is widespread and has a very escalating effect.
Experts have long warned of possible acts of violence, and there have already been many aggressive incidents on the street or in shops. “You can almost wait for someone to pull out a gun and do something like that,” says Kahane. That could happen “when someone is marked as an enemy or something is so tainted with aggression that someone actually hits them or kills someone.” The alleged perpetrator is not organized, but it is a form of terrorism “that arises out of the moment, so to speak. It is of course very dangerous,” says Kahane.
Action is played down and glorified
In the conversation with daily News-Moderator Mikhail Pavelets Kahane and Dittrich discuss why some milieus trivialize, glorify or depoliticize the act – and want to make a victim out of the alleged perpetrator.
The fact finder podcast is there in the ARD audio library, on tagesschau.de as well as on major platforms that offer podcasts.