Markus Söder hasn’t really gotten started yet, so he wants to clarify something first. He sees himself as a matter of course Digital Native, so that there are no doubts about it, as someone who has found his way in the digital world right from the start. The Bavarian Prime Minister is the opening speaker at the digital summit South German newspaper invited to Munich, where leading figures from politics, business and civil society will discuss issues relating to the digital world on Wednesday.
Is 57-year-old Söder a digital native? At least that’s how he sees it himself. And reality proves him right – at least on this point, and at least in comparison with the Federal Chancellor. Olaf Scholz (SPD) has been running a channel on Tiktok since Monday. Of course, Söder has been there for a long time, since November last year to be precise, and he has been posting pictures and videos on Instagram for even longer. He regularly presents what he eats – and what he doesn’t eat. “Chicken feet, duck tongues and rabbit heads” belong to the latter. This was recently on Söder’s trip to China, during which he reached a “lot” of people with his photos and videos – including ones with pandas and him at the Great Wall of China – as he says.
Judith Wittwer, editor-in-chief of the SZ, wants to know from the Bavarian Prime Minister what Söder would advise the Chancellor regarding Tiktok. And here too, Söder feels forced to put things right. “It’s clear that Olaf Scholz doesn’t have a particularly good hip swing,” said Söder. You have to know: The thing with the hip swing has a history. In February, while Söder was on a trip abroad in Sweden, he came on stage at the ABBA Museum in Stockholm, swung his hips and arms to “Dancing Queen” – and even sang along a little.
Söder on social media: “I don’t feel like leaving it to the AfD”
Political consultant Martin Fuchs has been observing Söder and his digital appearances for years and says: “I don’t know of any top German politician who does better on social media than Söder.” Bavaria’s Prime Minister is not above turning himself into a horst, as Fuchs calls it. “There’s something extremely human about it,” almost everyone has sung karaoke at some point. Söder himself says that on platforms like Tiktok and Instagram, “you can smile at yourself.” Political advisor Fuchs explains it like this: Through appearances like the one in Stockholm, Söder combines the state-supporting role of a prime minister with being close to the citizens. This is “extremely important” for people’s voting decisions.
Söder is probably more active on social media than almost any other top politician in Germany. At the SZ digital summit, he also gave an insight into his motivation behind it: “I don’t feel like leaving it to the AfD,” says Söder. The partly right-wing extremist party has far outpaced its political competitors when it comes to attention and reach on social media. The video of the AfD’s top candidate for the European elections, Maximilian Krah, is well known, in which he gives dating tips to young men. According to the motto: Real men are on the right, then it works with their girlfriends too. But, says Söder, it is unlikely that you will find a girlfriend if you are with the AfD. “You meet other people who are looking for a girlfriend and can’t find one.”
Söder reports on his social media strategy: “If you’re trying to reach a lot of people, you have to think about how you’re going to reach them.” He himself also comes up with – well – unconventional ideas: At Easter he published a video in which he gave away a huge chocolate egg with a “very interesting painting” on it, as he said at the time – his likeness.
Many people may see this critically, says the social media consultant, but in the end Söder is in the spotlight
Some people may shake their heads at actions like these, others may smile. But “it works extremely well,” says political consultant Martin Fuchs. “Söder understood that we live in a media age in which it’s all about producing images and stories.” And he knows exactly how to make himself a topic of conversation, “even if he doesn’t have a political message at all,” says Fuchs. “After all, everyone is talking about an Easter egg with the Prime Minister’s face on it.” Many people may see this critically or even reject it, but in the end Söder is in the spotlight. “And that sticks,” says the social media expert.
How this works could already be seen on Tuesday evening: Söder was actually supposed to speak at a Junge Union reception in Berlin, but was unable to do so. Instead, CDU leader Friedrich Merz stepped in. And he had brought something with him: a replica of Söder’s Easter egg. Söder is physically in the Bavarian state parliament today, said Merz, but “as an egg with us this evening.” So Söder was there in Berlin, even though he wasn’t there.
The Bavarian Prime Minister has already digitized his appearance and the creation of the Söder brand. But what about the Free State? At least he has big plans there. Söder has launched a high-tech agenda into which 5.5 billion euros will flow. The Technical University of Nuremberg, for example, will become a pure AI university, also “with the aim of attracting companies.”
Keyword: attracting companies: Bavaria is doing this without subsidies. This can safely be understood as criticism of the federal government, which, for example, is supporting the establishment of an Intel chip factory in Magdeburg with around ten billion euros. He thinks that’s “wrong,” said Söder. The state should promote research and support start-ups, but not a single company. In conversations with chip companies, however, he often finds that companies ask him: “What do you pay?” And he is “not a fan” of such funding for settlement. Instead, Bavaria wants to score points with the right framework conditions and with the combination of “performance and lifestyle,” said Söder. “With us you surf with AI and then you surf in the Eisbach.”
Söder also had one tip left for a representative from his cabinet: There is a minister who likes to ask: “Do you need all this digital clutter?” – and you inevitably think of Hubert Aiwanger. But if you answer the question with “yes,” you have to work for it, said Söder. When it comes to digitalization and especially when it comes to artificial intelligence, the only question that remains is: “Are we there or aren’t we?” As Bavarian Prime Minister, it is his job to ensure that Bavaria is involved. But it’s hard to imagine that the digital native Söder won’t be there somewhere.