How big was the damage that Udo Foht did to Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk? Eleven years after the scandal surrounding the broadcaster’s former head of entertainment became known, a trial at the Leipzig Regional Court is trying to clear up the case. The 72-year-old is accused of fraud, breach of trust, bribery and tax evasion. On Friday, Karola Wille, the director of MDR, testified against Foht – and for the first time publicly quantified the amount of damages that the broadcaster is demanding from its former manager: 300,000 euros. Foht has already paid for larger parts of it – and continues to pay off, Wille explained to the dpa.
In his influential function as head of entertainment, Foht played a key role in shaping the hit section of ARD until 2011. He was considered a patron of German musicians such as Florian Silbereisen and Helene Fischer, whom he made famous with shows and performances at prime time. At the same time, he is said to have repeatedly begged larger loans – up to five-digit amounts – from music managers and production companies. Foht made a confession shortly after the trial began: He deliberately risked not being able to repay the money on time.
In return, were there any advantages for the managers and producers, such as new orders or more airtime? The defendant denied that. The “lenders had no benefits,” only “damage,” he said in his confession. He only wanted to pre-finance the production of new programs with the money.
In any case, the MDR was also damaged, “a big one,” says director Karola Wille. The trained lawyer was already in a high management position when the case became known in 2011: she was legal director and deputy director. In 2011, her department received a warning letter from a production company that suddenly demanded the return of money borrowed from Foht and MDR. A rule violation? She initially assumed that, according to the dpa, Wille testified in court. Later there were further indications of unpaid claims from producers: A lender who had lent Foht 20,000 euros finally gave concrete information. The next day, she recommended to her station boss, the then director Udo Reiter, to immediately suspend Foht, ban her from the house and file a criminal complaint.
At the MDR, the scandal scratches the image at the wrong time
It is important for Wille and her press department to emphasize again and again that she acted quickly at the time and that the broadcaster cooperated extensively with the investigators. It’s about damage limitation: After the RBB scandal, the ARD broadcasters are under particular pressure this year. The unwillingness to pay broadcasting fees continues to grow among the population – especially in Saxony, where MDR is headquartered. The old scandal scratches the image again at the wrong time.
It’s no wonder that the MDR now welcomes the fact that “this entire matter is now being brought to a conclusion under criminal law,” as Wille explained in a statement after the trial. MDR learned a lesson from that time and under her leadership “built one of the most modern and best compliance management systems. Today we are considered a role model within ARD,” says Wille. For the 63-year-old, this emphasis should also be important for personal reasons: she will not be running for another term in office next year. The Foht case makes a significant contribution to how one will look back on her time as artistic director.