The moderator Jörg Thadeusz is known for his opinionated appearance. He not only asks critical questions to politicians and celebrities for the broadcaster rbb, he also likes to express himself in columns. Most recently about life in Berlin. Education is poor, the authorities are impossible, things like the Google campus are being prevented, while a referendum for the expropriation of real estate companies is enjoying enormous popularity. Thadeusz ‘conclusion: “stumbling statehood” in “badly governed Berlin”.
You can certainly put it that way – but Thadeusz did it in a two-page column that appeared in a publication called “Opportunities – The Magazine Before Election”. Published by the Berlin FDP, which wants to play a larger political role after the House of Representatives election on September 26th. For the sender, a “limit has been exceeded”, as it is called on the SZ request. According to the rules of procedure, rbb employees have the right to be politically active in their free time. But it should be avoided that the station is associated with it, especially in election campaigns.
The decision was “not made easy”, according to the rbb
It’s not the first time that Thadeusz has had this kind of trouble: in 2017, he moderated a CDU election campaign event with Angela Merkel. He referred to his work in the rbb, which the broadcaster expressly disapproved of. The question now is what follows from this. The following applies to permanent and freelance employees of the rbb: Those who take part in an election campaign are not allowed to go on the air in the six weeks before an election date. What would Thadeusz mean, his format Thadeusz and the watchers not likely to moderate before the Berlin election. But he should, which causes some incomprehension in Berlin. The rbb states that the program “only hosts various journalists with different positions and attitudes”. This spectrum reflects a “broad diversity of opinion” and therefore stands “in a special way for political controversy”. It was agreed with Jörg Thadeusz that he would otherwise not take on any further obligations in the rbb. In the program, he will also comment on his publication himself.
In another case, the broadcaster took a harder hit. The radio presenter Marion Brasch, who signed an appeal by cultural workers for the left-wing top candidate Klaus Lederer, is no longer allowed to be on air until the election. When asked how to get to the different treatment, the station only said: The decision was “not made easy”, the individual case was considered and Thadeusz “clearly communicated” the station’s point of view. Thadeusz himself writes: There are rules in public broadcasters, namely that as a journalist he does not have to appear in any election campaign environment. “I disregarded that, so the station’s criticism is justified. I will heed that for the future.”