– “In our news coverage of migration issues, we have not been critical enough and have failed to question certain things,” says Florian Hager, chairman of the ARD, the association of public service broadcasters in Germany.
This striking statement from the German broadcasting chief was made last Tuesday, when Hager was a guest on the podcast hosted by journalist Paul Ronzheimer, a reporter for Axel Springer Global.
Florian Hager has been head of Hessischer Rundfunk (HR) since 2022, and has been chairman of the ARD board since 1 January 2025. It is therefore a period for which he himself has not held ultimate responsibility for very long that he is now taking issue with.
He also believes that the public broadcasters have adopted a patronising attitude towards AfD voters, as is evident from Die Welt’s unsigned summary of the podcast.
Hager believes that journalism exists for the public:
“I try to distinguish between AfD politicians and those who vote for the AfD.” Voters’ concerns must not be ignored. “And if there is a feeling that we do not represent them, that they are not being seen or that they can no longer trust us, then that is a huge issue for us. And then you can’t say: ‘That’s their problem …’ – no, it’s our problem.”
He suggests that those in power have brought the AfD’s success upon themselves:
Hager refers to conversations with police representatives that have made him reconsider his views on AfD voters. Those who have been driving to the same troubled neighbourhood for years without seeing any changes, “regardless of who has been in power”, feel that politicians are not listening to them. In the absence of political solutions, a desire for a change of government arises: “I can well imagine that at a certain point people say: ‘OK, now someone else has to take over’. It’s difficult in terms of substance, of course, but understandable.”
The ARD chief wonders whether the shortcomings in news coverage have also had political consequences:
He talks about his dialogue with local authorities and mayors – and about problems that are not being resolved at local level. Much has been given too little space in the news coverage: ‘When I hear that things simply aren’t working at local level, it may be because they haven’t received enough attention in our news coverage.’
Hager also wonders whether recruitment to the journalism profession creates a distance between the industry and ordinary people:
Hager also takes a critical view of the training of journalists. It is often particularly talented applicants from academic families who gain entry to journalism courses. This can lead to editorial teams losing touch with other walks of life. He understands the impression ARD gives to some viewers: “I can well understand that some people have the impression that, at one point or another, we come across as patronising.”
Self-reflection amongst media executives is not an everyday occurrence.
In 2017, the then political editor of VG wrote that ‘Norway probably has the world’s best press’.
