Reactions to the election of the new SRG Director General

Weck's opponent, FDP National Councillor Filippo Leutenegger, declared himself "surprised". He did not want to say much about his election defeat. "I wish Roger de Weck all the best for this challenging task," said Leutenegger. De Weck may have many skills, but he lacks management experience, said Zurich National Councillor and FDP Vice President Markus Hutter. Managing a company with over 6,000 employees and implementing reforms is an enormous challenge.

SVP: "Red state television"
Christoph Mörgeli from the SVP was extremely unhappy. "I'm not surprised that left-wing Swiss television has chosen such a figure. It's just a particular irony of fate that one of the most fanatical EU high priests gets this post," the politician commented on the election on Blick.ch. "I also wonder how he will manage the SRG - after all, he has been writing against the market economy for decades."
SVP National Councillor Ulrich Giezendanner also had clear words: with the left-liberal pro-European Roger de Weck, everything remains the same: "Red state television", he told the news agency SDA. The lobbying of the bourgeois circles was probably simply too short-term, Giezendanner said in self-criticism. However, his 21-strong bourgeois "media group" will now become even more active. The Zurich SVP National Councillor and AUNS Managing Director Hans Fehr senses a scandal: objective and balanced reporting under the "EU turbo squared" is a mockery.
The SVP is also seeking talks with de Weck: in a communiqué, the party expects him to "clarify his position on important political and entrepreneurial issues and on the SVP" in the coming weeks.

SP and CVP satisfied
The CVP and SP were delighted with the new SRG Director General. De Weck is an avowed fighter against polarization in the country, said CVP spokesperson Marianne Binder. Her party hopes that he will also be successful at radio and television and strengthen solution-oriented, constructive and pragmatic approaches. SP National Councillor Hans-Jürg Fehr characterized the designated SRG Director General as a "convinced fighter for the public service". De Weck is a good choice precisely because he comes from journalism and is not a manager, said the Schaffhausen SP politician.

Media unions delighted
With de Weck's election, the SRG Board of Directors is sending a clear signal and demonstrating that journalistic quality and diversity will be its top business priority in the future, Impressum announced on Tuesday. The company is confident that with its new Director General, SRG will remain a reliable social partner, a fair employer and a guarantor of internal and external press freedom and quality journalism.
De Weck is a person of political and human integrity, said Comedia spokesperson Nina Scheu on Tuesday at the request of the SDA news agency. Barbara Büttner from the Swiss Syndicate of Media Professionals (SSM) noted that the designated SRG Director General represents the kind of public service she would like to see.
The Swiss Trade Association (SGV), on the other hand, has doubts as to whether De Weck is fit for concordance: De Weck has marginalized large sections of the population with his previous journalistic and political commitment, writes the association. He is therefore not suitable for promoting the "idée suisse", which is based on balance in the monopoly media sector.