The Constitutional Protection Authority oversees RT Deutsch because of its coverage of the coronavirus crisis, Bild.de said. The article is currently fixed. Her author misinterpreted the response of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and, thus, issued fake news.
On Tuesday evening, the online portal Bild.de published an article whose main idea was that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) and the Federal Criminal Police Directorate were watching RT Deutsch because the channel was conducting propaganda coverage of events related to the coronavirus epidemic .
As an example of such propaganda, the author of the article, sincerely disliked by RT Deutsch and Russia, Bild editor Julian Röpke, cites an interview with general practitioner Klaus Könlein, a conversation with economist Max Otte, Kani Tuyala’s position and a conversation with doctor Bob Arnot about handwashing.
Meanwhile, RT Deutsch covers the epidemic of coronavirus more than multifaceted. Inside the editorial board, opinions about the extent of the danger posed by the virus and the proportionality of measures taken by the state differ. Discussions on these issues, however, should be open.
The interviews that caused Bild.de to protest were exactly what they are — they were interviews. Statements by experts were identified as expressing private opinion. And Tuyala - not at all as Bild.de suggested - formulating his position, stated from the very beginning that the coronavirus was not created artificially.
All this an objective journalist could easily establish. However, author Bild Röpke in his article talks about "distorted coverage of events." Moreover, the first version of the article also said that “Putin’s state propaganda” in Germany forced the constitutional protection department to become more active. Along with the Criminal Police Directorate, it allegedly oversaw RT Deutsch because of its coverage of the coronavirus crisis.
At first the title sounded like this:
“Due to the propaganda of the coronavirus, the constitutional protection agency has set its sights on the Russian channel”
However, along with parts of the article, Bild.de also replaced the title - and removed any connection with RT from there. On Wednesday morning it appears:
“Because of the propaganda of the coronavirus, the constitutional authority is checking the manipulation of the crisis with the coronavirus.”
What happened? Röpke sent requests to both departments and interpreted the response of at least BfV in such a way that the department was obviously forced to intervene and insist on changes. In his Twitter account, Ryopke kindly posted both his questions and the department’s answers.
The editor of Bild, whose questions his questions allow him to understand more deeply, first asks if the constitutional authority is monitoring RT Deutsch because of its coverage of the coronavirus crisis. To this agency, he rather evasively answers that he “knows” about RT Deutsch and that it - and this statement, obviously, was made irrespective of RT Deutsch - is monitoring the possible manipulation of the crisis theme with coronavirus.
On this basis, Röpke made a statement that BfV is monitoring RT Deutsch and checking whether RT Deutsch is manipulating the theme of the crisis. After the intervention of the department, Bild.de provided the word “observe” with an asterisk and made a note under the article:
“The Constitutional Protection Office over the phone asked Bild to note that it does not“ monitor ” RT Deutsch in the legal sense, but only“ looks closely ”at it.”
In a tweet that he later deleted, Ryopke himself reported this call and wrote:
“I just got a call from BfV . They didn’t give me any information on RT Deutsch , they do not observe anything and do not check anything.
I asked five questions about RT Deutsch , the answer began with RT Deutsch , followed by more details.
Nice to poke around. I stay at my place. ”
Despite the author’s wayward statement, the matter was not limited to this small revision of the article. In a version of the text published on Tuesday, the focus suddenly shifted from an imaginary observation allegedly being conducted by the department for the protection of the constitution.
Instead, Thomas Hacker, the politician of the Free Democratic Party, put it in the spotlight, saying:
“Russian state propaganda is not part of freedom of expression. It poses a danger to classical media and society as a whole. ”
Obviously, the representative of the free democrats did indeed make these statements that were especially noteworthy for the liberal, so they did not have to be changed. Under the text of the article, the changes are now explained as follows:
“In an early version of the article, Bild interpreted the written statements of BfV in the sense that surveillance was established for RT Deutsch and that“ continuous monitoring ”of the extent to which“ manipulating the theme of the crisis with coronavirus ”is present refers to the actions of the channel. However, after the publication of the article, BfV drew attention to being understood in the sense that RT Deutsch is not monitored in the legal context, but that the crisis is being manipulated with the coronavirus as a whole. ”
However, this revision made against the will, however, was followed by an implicit demand for a constitutional protection agency, nevertheless, to establish surveillance for RT Deutsch because of its coverage of the coronavirus topic:
"In view of the still problematic coverage of events by RT Deutsch (see an example), it remains to be hoped, however, that BfV will very closely monitor the methods of the Kremlin channel in the future."
On Bild.de, the false claim that the constitutional authority oversees RT Deutsch because of its coverage of the coronavirus epidemic can no longer be found. However, others continue to cite the Bild article as a reputable source - for example, RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland, or even a news agency such as AFP: as a result of the accusation, unfortunately, they become imaginary common knowledge.
In order, we openly debunk the allegations of the tabloid as flagrant distortions or even pure water false messages.
In this text, we were able to count five charges. We will now examine each of these charges in detail.
Accusation 1: “The Russian state channel RT Deutsch casts doubt on and manipulates the theme of the crisis with coronavirus in Germany. The measures of the federal government are being denigrated as “escalating panic” and an attempt to “gain more control over society”.
Facts: Like all other media, RT Deutsch strives to provide comprehensive coverage of events related to the coronavirus crisis. Like all journalists, we recognize the importance of this task. At the center of these efforts are the most relevant data on the spread of the pandemic in Germany and the world, as well as measures taken against it.
For this, for almost two weeks now we have been conducting a section with real-time updates “Live-Updates: current information on the crisis with coronavirus in Germany and the world”, which is always displayed on the main page in the main rotator with the main photo and teaser changing daily. The page with current updates is now by a large margin in the number of hits among readers.
On March 24th and 25th (at 18 o’clock), in our section with real-time updates, 30 posts were posted related to Germany, 5 related to Russia, 11 related to the rest of Europe and 20 related to the rest of the world. Most of these messages consist of official statements with information of high value to everyone - for example, “the number of infected people increased by almost 8 thousand during the day”, “Bosch is developing an express test for coronavirus”, “Jens Span on the crisis with coronavirus: "The calm before the storm" or "Russia wants to build 16 infection centers throughout the country." Positive news is also paid attention to: "Where Germany helps abroad in the crisis with coronavirus" or "Rewe plans to pay bonuses to employees."
Accusation 2: "Even such basic precautions as washing hands are portrayed as not very helpful."
Facts: Bild did not accidentally hide the title block above the article behind an active hyperlink. Because it reads: “Doctor: frequent hand washing will not protect you from COVID -19 in direct contact with other people.” Because the cited doctor, Dr. Bob Arnot, a former medical chief correspondent for NBC and CBS News , wanted to encourage people to isolate themselves - that is, to what all sites, including the federal government, are calling for:
“You can wash your hands all day, but despite this, you will still earn a coronavirus if someone coughs near you. No one has yet proven that humans become infected through contact with surfaces. ”
He emphasized that self-isolation is a much smarter strategy in order to avoid illness. Arnoth assumes that the virus will completely “burn out” if all people stay at home for three weeks, the article RT further says.
Thus, the doctor’s statement was distorted beyond recognition. If you take statements out of context, then the words of a Berlin physician in an interview with Bild can be interpreted as if he advises to completely abandon handwashing:
“By washing your hands, you can wash off a couple of viruses, you can’t destroy them, but rather, you can contribute to the further spread.”
If his statement had ended, the meaning of washing his hands would have been completely crossed out. However, he adds: disinfection is, in fact, the only right decision. Moreover, we are talking about an expert who has already been repeatedly interviewed by RT Deutsch: Professor Klaus-Dieter Zastrow - a doctor specializing in hygiene problems.
Accusation 3: “The epidemic as a whole is being questioned through questionable expert interviews. This culminates in headlines such as "An Epidemic That Never Happened."
Facts: This time the criticism is directed to an interview with the general practitioner, MD Klaus Könlyayn in the program Der Fehlende Part ("The missing part"). At the same time, moderator Yasmin Kozubek in the main photo is depicted with the question: “Is all this a panic attack?”
Here you should, first of all, once again pay attention to the question mark. Or can journalists no longer ask? Here you also need to know the context and specific statements in order to understand what was discussed in the material, instead of just attacking the headline. To the program, which was the first time in two months that was devoted to this topic, the following was done:
“As often happens, the population is very distrustful of the topic of coronavirus. Who can be trusted? Even reputable scientists and virologists do not agree. Dozens of questions remain unclear. The question of the credibility of the test is also a controversial topic. An experienced general practitioner from Kiel wants to clarify that the test shows a high margin of error and doubts the extreme danger of the virus as a whole. ”
The program does not only consist of this interview. Two videos are devoted to the general situation in Germany and the world, another story to independent media on YouTube. The interview was preceded by the following words:
“Dr. Könlein criticizes not only the escalation of panic around the coronavirus crisis, but also that test errors are over 50 percent.”
Accusation 4: The reproach to the financial expert Max Otte is also serious. He spread libel against the federal government, accusing him of seeking control over society.
Facts: What does RT Deutsch write about this ? "The author of Weltsystemcrash (The Collapse of the World System, 2019) does not rule out that the crisis around the coronavirus can be used to give more control to the state." In a seven-minute interview on Skype, an expert who a few years ago kept a column on stocks in Bild itself says:
“This crisis is used to continue to transform our social system towards greater control. A force-driven economy may not be good, but it can delay this recession. ”
The interview revolves almost exclusively around the actual or potential impacts of the coronavirus crisis on the economy and financial system. Criticism of the federal government is by no means the center of attention, but presented as abstractly as possible. First of all, the expert is critical of nationalization.
In this case, the initiators of the prosecution expose themselves as unreliable representatives of the federal government, who, even with the most silent criticism, faint and foresee sabotage, and not as journalists. Against this background, even the Russian government, which Bild loves to create a bad reputation of a despotic, seems much more sovereign, you just have to look at the headings of the Russian portals of the German broadcasting channel Deutsche Welle:
“The coronavirus destroyed the dreams of Vladimir Putin”, “President Putin and his“ oil war ”: the Russian economy is on the verge of collapse?”, “What fake about coronavirus is Russia spreading in the EU?”
Accusation 5: RT Deutsch spreads the rumor that the Pentagon could bring COVID -19 in the laboratory.
Facts: Video "Biological military operations: coronavirus and death from the laboratory" of RT editor Dr. Kani Tuyala, who allegedly spread rumors, begins with the following disclaimer:
“Anticipating the following point of view: the latest analytical calculations by virologists come to the unequivocal conclusion that in the case of coronavirus ( COVID -19) we are not talking - I emphasize: not talking - about an artificially created virus. The intention of the following comment is to draw attention to the enormous dangers that biological weapons pose, their development and related experiments. Current events should serve in this light as just a sufficient warning. ”
Does this need further clarification? It doesn’t matter how purely journalistic work is done on RT Deutsch - what doesn’t fit is set to fit when a new campaign is launched to ban RT Deutsch. Because at the end of the path there should be a complete closure of the “Putin channel” - this is the author of the Bild pamphlet Julian Röpke constantly makes clear in his tweets and articles.
Vladislav Sankin