Luzerner Zeitung and St. Galler Tagblatt do not give terror a platform
In today's edition, the Luzerner Zeitung and the St. Galler Tagblatt are sending a clear message against terrorism: Instead of national news coverage, they published a blank page—in memory of the victims.
Terrorist events are unfortunately part of the routine for reporters and readers today. Reading is often followed by forgetting - until the next attack. The Luzerner Zeitung and the St. Galler Tagblatt decided to take an unusual step after the latest event last weekend: Page 3 of the coverage was left blank. Instead of the usual reporting, a single sentence appeared: "In memory of the victims of Islamist terror, we are refraining from reporting here".
According to Pascal Hollenstein, Head of Journalism, this is a response to the frequent criticism that editorial offices become accomplices of terrorists by disseminating news. Hollenstein explains: "The perpetrators were Islamists, there were casualties. That's all you really need to know." He sees the blank page as a sign that the agenda should not be dictated by violent criminals. There is a fine line between the public's right to information and today's caesura: regular reporting will resume tomorrow, Wednesday.
