To the point: Absurdistan
In my opinion, the best analysis of the Hildebrand case was made by Peer Teuwsen in Die Zeit. Unfortunately, he forgot to question the role of the media. This was just as pitoyable as that of the economy.
Because the whole thing was initiated from the right-wing mud corner, the anti-Blocher reflex took hold at first. Understandable, but unfortunately also unprofessional. Instead of trying to get closer to the truth by doing their own research, they first defended Hildebrand, who had been shot, and thus left the field to the self-appointed moral guardians of the SVP. Critical journalism should always remain neutral, even if the sympathies lie with the suspect.
It was to be expected that the anti-Blocher reflex would cause further media embarrassment. Then, last Sunday, the time had come. In the SonntagsZeitung, the presidents of all the major parties except the SVP demanded that Weltwoche disclose its ownership structure. In the Hildebrand affair, Weltwoche had obviously "run a campaign influenced by the SVP", which was also directed against state institutions. For this reason, it must now be clarified who is behind Weltwoche and what role Christoph Blocher may be playing there. But it gets even better: GLP leader Bäumle believes that "all media must explain who exerts influence on them. The public needs to know who the big shareholders, financial backers and donors are, as well as the big advertisers, he says. "Ultimately, we need new media law provisions that create transparency at publishing houses," says SP man Christian Levrat. A "Lex Weltwoche" is supposed to do the trick.
Was there an outcry in the media? Not at all. Only very isolated voices objected to such a "Lex Weltwoche. A monstrosity, because after all, practically all party leaders have demanded nothing less than a new law that would control and harness the media. At the same time, they have degraded all their members into dumb media consumers who cannot judge for themselves which party-political or economic interests an article or a medium is pursuing.
Pro memoria: After World War II, publishers had to apply for a license from the occupying powers in Germany in order to make a newspaper. Since this could be withdrawn at any time, there were possibilities for disciplining and controlling the licensed newspapers. Perhaps there will be a similar procedure in Switzerland in the future. Somewhere there is certainly room for a corresponding federal office of media watchdogs. Welcome to the past!
Pierre C. Meier, Editor-in-Chief
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