Ombudsman defends DOK film "The Silent Majority

The image of the Solothurn town shown on April 12 in the fifty-minute DOK film "Die schweigende Mehrheit - Schweizer Nabelschau in Grenchen" on SRF 1 caused outrage. Several articles appeared in the local media, angry citizens spoke out. The film was described as "tendentious," "polemical," and "completely off the mark.

In addition to the FDP city president, François Scheidegger, five other critics complained to the SRF ombudsman. The ombudsman published his report on Tuesday. However, he agrees with the complainants only in individual factual details.

Based on three couples, the SRF journalist presented the problem of the silent majority in Switzerland in her DOK film. Showed people who are politically insecure, afraid of globalization and do not go to vote. She chose Grenchen based on statistical data, as the Ombudsman writes. Grenchen reflects the arguments "The permanently large abstention, high social welfare and foreigner rates or even the clear political shift from the Bilaterals to the mass immigration initiative have led the author to Grenchen," Ombusmann Roger Blum told Keystone-SDA on Tuesday. This is legitimate and understandable, he added.

The program's autonomy allows it to take up a topic and pin it down where the arguments about it are reflected, he said. "It quickly becomes clear to the audience that the three couples are at the center and not Grenchen as a city," Blum said. It is therefore possible for the viewer to form his or her own opinion.

The six critics had submitted a whole list of complaints to the ombudsman. These ranged from violation of journalistic due diligence and factual accuracy to manipulation and thesis journalism to discrimination, insult and instrumentalization of those involved.

The ombudsman dismisses most of these objections in his report. He understands that the film could be read as a portrait of Grenchen, Blum said. "But focusing on the negative aspects is legitimate in a film about this topic." Also, he said, no one was discriminated against, nor was the audience manipulated.

Unfortunate selection of pairs

However, the ombudsman describes the selection of the couples as unfortunate, which is why the title "The silent majority" cannot be redeemed. One of the three couples is indeed politically involved and the couple from Bosnia cannot do so because they do not have the right to vote. "On the other hand, all three stand for identity and future fears."

In total, the Ombudsman considered four out of 13 complaints to be justified. These were mainly concerned with details. For example, incorrect information was given about the SP representation on the municipal council, the administrator of the citizens' community was incorrectly named, and the integration of the Bosnian couple was not shown clearly enough.

The ombudsman's office does not make any legally valid decisions. It merely advises and mediates. Complainants can still file a complaint with the Independent Complaints Authority for Radio and Television (UBI) until July 27.

Shortly after the broadcast, SRF and the Mayor of Grenchen agreed to publish a supplement on the homepage of the DOK program. This pointed out that, in the view of the mayor, Grenchen was being portrayed too negatively and that the positive economic developments of recent years were not being addressed. In addition, a scene was cut out of the film because it showed a woman who had not given her consent. In addition, a sequence with clarifying information was editorially supplemented on the Internet, as SRF announced on request. (SDA)