The initial situation was clearly outlined: Journalism in Switzerland is under pressure - economically, socially and in terms of identity. This was the premise of a panel discussion held as part of the series "In search of the truth - We and journalism" which was moderated by journalist and curator Thomas Gull and was closely based on Roger de Weck's book "Das Prinzip Trotzdem - Warum wir den Journalismus vor den Medien retten müssen". The author himself was part of the panel, which included Nina Graf (Tsüri.ch), Min Li Marti (P.S.) and communication scientist Linards Udris (fög UZH).
The focus was on three questions: What is the cause of the crisis? What does it mean for democracy and society? And what are the ways out?
Everyday crisis as a normal state
Min Li Marti, editor of the social democratic newspaper Weekly newspaper P.S. and National Councillor, spoke of a state of emergency in the media, which is not a new phenomenon for small left-wing publications. The newspaper has always survived on shaky foundations - supported by donations and a small advertising section. It continues to be printed because: The willingness to pay is higher there than online. But even this structure is coming under increasing pressure. The editorial clout is hardly sufficient to continuously accompany important political business at municipal or even federal level.
Marti criticized right-wing circles for deliberately undermining the credibility of the media - and at the same time establishing their own platforms. The aim is to gain control of the discourse and establish their own media system. Journalism often lacks the strength to fight back - also because resources are dwindling.
New paths, old problems
Nina Graf, co-founder of Tsüri.chreported on the daily balancing act between journalistic standards and the struggle for economic survival. Graf sees the crisis not in journalism itself, but in its distribution and financing logic. Her editorial team is close to the community and tries to report at eye level. But the effort is high. Tsüri.ch does a lot of things right - but that is by no means enough to overcome structural challenges on its own.
A democracy without media?
Linards Udris from the fög at the University of Zurich drew attention to systemic dangers: The "attention crisis" among the population is clashing with the economic crisis of the media - a toxic interplay. If editorial teams are thinned out and agency reports slip through the net, there is a risk of a creeping loss of control and public debate. This is particularly problematic in a direct democratic system like Switzerland.
De Weck's diagnosis: a crisis of identity, meaning and returns
Roger de Weck provided the intellectual superstructure. His book "Das Prinzip Trotzdem - Warum wir den Journalismus vor den Medien retten müssen" (Suhrkamp) is a defense of journalism - against silence, against resignation. It describes an attitude: carry on, even if the circumstances are adverse. De Weck sees the current situation as a triple crisis: journalism is losing importance because the public is paying less attention to it. It is losing its identity because it too often aligns itself with social media. And it is losing its profitability because business models are eroding.
He criticized media companies that reduce quality and push sensationalism in order to survive digitally - with the paradoxical effect that they receive even less trust and attention as a result. The so-called Mittelbau - i.e. regional daily newspapers - are under particular pressure. Many have lost their backbone, the classified markets, to tech platforms. What remains is often a journalistic torso.
Principle Nevertheless - with a system
De Weck showed that things can be done differently - for example in the canton of Fribourg. There, the state not only promotes the distribution of regional media, but also participates in their financing via public institutions - without exerting any influence. The newspaper La Liberté remains editorially independent and benefits from broad support. Even free online subscriptions for young people have been introduced - a sign that media policy imagination also exists at cantonal level.
For De Weck, one thing is clear: journalism is not a purely private matter. It is part of the public infrastructure - just like the education system or public transport. Accordingly, the state must also take responsibility.
What journalism is missing
Despite many examples of resilience - from P.S. to Tsüri.ch - it became clear in the discussion what journalism in Switzerland also lacks: self-confidence. Public perception is weak and there is little pride in one's own role. In an environment in which wages are falling, budgets are shrinking and attacks on credibility are increasing, this attitude is explainable - but dangerous. Because if you talk yourself down, you also make yourself dispensable.
In this sense, Roger de Weck's "Das Prinzip Trotzdem - Warum wir den Journalismus vor den Medien retten müssen" is not just a description of the status quo. It is also a call: to carry on - and to stand up.
Roger de Weck's book "Das Prinzip Trotzdem - Warum wir den Journalismus vor den Medien retten müssen" has been published by edition suhrkamp SV. The book description reads: "Authoritarian populists are on the rise. Disinformation and fake news are rampant. And journalism, which should be fighting back? It can't get out of the crisis. There are more media, but fewer and fewer resources for journalism. Publishers want..." The book is available in stores.
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This was announced by the Republic on Friday evening at the request of the news agency Keystone-SDA. It thus confirmed a corresponding report by CH Media.
As soon as a suitable successor has been found, von Wunschheim and Reinhard will step down. The reason given by the Republic de Weck's resignation, the Board of Directors and the Executive Board see this turning point as an opportunity for overall renewal. The Board of Directors and the Executive Board see this turning point as an opportunity for overall renewal. The magazine's editor-in-chief is also currently vacant.
Roger de Weck had only been elected last November. Now he has resigned his mandate as a member of the Board of Directors of Republic and of the Board of Directors of the cooperative as of March 10. The reason for the resignation was "differing views within the Board of Directors on strategy, the importance of journalism, how to deal with the challenging situation and the role of the Board of Directors," according to the Republic had announced in a newsletter on Thursday. (SDA)
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Roger de Weck was editor-in-chief at the Tages-Anzeiger and at the Time and Director General of SRG from 2011 to 2017. He has just published his book "The power of democracy - a response to authoritarian reactionaries" also in paperback with a new preface. He wrote the book before Corona, feeling vindicated by the crisis: Populists, de Weck writes, have shown in the crisis that - once in power - they have nothing to offer and make the problems even worse.
But isn't the author and publicist too naive? Isn't society divided by Corona - also in Switzerland - as never before? Has the power of enlightenment and reason faded? And can democracy renew itself at all and come back stronger? Reto Lipp discusses this with him in the latest episode.
In the monthly Comsumcast, SRF journalist and presenter Reto Lipp talks to pioneering minds from the media and communications industry. The topic: How is the Corona pandemic affecting the industry?
The Comsumcast is the replacement for the Communication Summit of the ZPRG (Zurich PR Society) and the ZPV (Zurich Press Association). The annual event at ETH Zurich was cancelled this year. A new episode appears every month, and nine have already been produced. It is created in the tablecast studio of Christoph Soltmannowski, where also the in-house video podcast of m&k and Advertising Week "Off The Record" is recorded.
Here go to the Comsumcast with Roger de Weck.
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"We are open to new business models in terms of advertising," said de Weck in an interview with the NZZ am Sonntag. SRG could, for example, be obliged to meet a certain threshold of advertising revenue. "If SRG's advertising revenue exceeds this threshold, part of it would flow into the indirect promotion of media." His successor Gilles Marchand has proposed this. "Such models are more sensible than restricting advertising at SRG," said the SRG boss. He is convinced that the German and French channels in particular, with their Swiss advertising windows, would benefit from a restriction. Channel reduction "anachronistic"
De Weck has little sympathy for calls from private media companies for SRG to be downsized. When asked about this several times, he said, among other things, that SRG had not expanded in the past ten years. The debate about the number of channels is also "anachronistic". With apps, websites, social media and smart TV, new distribution channels have been added to radio and television. "In a few years, we will no longer be talking about channels at all, but about the optimal use of the six distribution channels to reach the audience," he said. In the interview, De Weck also speaks out against the so-called "open content" demand, which is supported by the National Council's Media Commission and according to which private media companies should have free access to SRG broadcasts. This is "completely unrealistic in the jungle of copyrights", said de Weck.
Main problem of journalism financing
De Weck explains the SRG's criticism of private media groups, which want less advertising on public television and a smaller SRG, with their own problems, among other things. Their stance is: as they themselves are worse off due to the migration of advertising money to the internet, the public media house must also cut back. If this logic were to continue, "all media would ultimately be weakened", said de Weck. The main problem of media policy is not the SRG, but the question of "how journalism can still be financed in the future". This is a central problem in terms of democratic policy: "Any weakening of journalism weakens democracy, which is dependent on an enlightened public."
Better the state than "power mongers"
However, De Weck identifies "powerful forces" that want to intimidate and destabilize enlightened media. Cue Donald Trump, who is too opposed to the independence of the media. De Weck does not want to address the question of whether he has portrayed the SRG as a bulwark against a national conservative press. In his own words, however, he expects newspaper titles to come onto the market in Switzerland and is concerned that "political forces are acquiring one medium after another". This would serve neither the media market nor democracy, he said. In such an environment, de Weck can also imagine journalism being financed by state bodies. He cites the ownership model of Fribourg's La Liberté as an example. The Fribourg cantonal bank and the cantonal electricity company have joined in - via an interposed foundation to prevent influence. For de Weck, such a model is preferable to the alternative, in which "people in power" could take control of publications. A "two-level model" could possibly emerge: "At national level, fee-payers finance the SRG and 34 regional broadcasters. At cantonal level, forward-thinking public servants take the initiative." This week, the National Council's Media Commission launched a series of demands in the dispute over the direction of SRG. In addition to the "Open Content" demand, it is also calling for the closure of broadcasters and wants the Federal Council to examine the impact of restricting advertising. (SDA)
Image: OBS/SRG SSR/Danielle Liniger
The SRG Board of Directors had elected Marchand as Director General at the beginning of November. This succession arrangement guarantees stability against the backdrop of the upheaval in the media, SRG wrote in its statement on Friday. In view of this upheaval, SRG is facing up to the discussion about the future mission of the public media house SRG. In doing so, SRG is building on cooperation with other Swiss media companies and maintaining a constructive and critical dialogue with the public, society and politics.
Marchand moved to the helm of French-speaking Switzerland's television in 2001. He has led the Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) corporate unit since the convergence of radio, television and online in 2010. As deputy to the current director general, he looked after SRG's foreign relations, among other things.
Until he takes up his post in October 2017, Marchand wants to prepare for his future work, network in the different language regions and deepen his knowledge of German. The post of RTS Director will be advertised at the beginning of December.
De Weck will reach normal retirement age in 2018 and hand over the reins of SRG's General Management after around seven years in office. At their meeting, delegates also elected Alice Šáchová-Kleisli as a new member of the Board of Directors, succeeding Regula Bührer-Fecker. (SDA)
According to NZZ am Sonntag, acting Director General Roger de Weck will hand over the office next year to his deputy, RTS Director Gilles Marchand. The position will therefore not be advertised this time, but the succession will be settled by appointment. The NZZ am Sonntag bases its statements "on several people in positions of responsibility at SRG".
With this approach, the SRG Boards of Directors want to ensure as smooth a handover of office as possible "in stormy times". However, the targeted path still requires the approval of the SRG delegates.
Roger de Weck is two years away from retirement age. As SRG President Viktor Baumeler confirmed to the NZZ am Sonntag, "personnel planning" is therefore an issue. However, the changes will not be announced until the end of the year.
The newspaper's presumed successor is described as strong in communications and competent when it comes to new media.
The thesis that it could be Merchand is justified, among other things, by the fact that he is already very familiar with the matter and would not need to be trained. Furthermore, a promotion seems necessary to prevent a possible RTS departure. The NZZ am Sonntag considers it unlikely that de Weck will step down only upon his retirement - and thus in the middle of the No Billag referendum campaign. Moreover, an early handover of the baton could circumvent the simultaneous resignation of de Weck and SRF Director Rudolf Matter.
In an initial assessment of de Weck's term in office, the reorganization of SRG and the harmonization of technology and processes are mentioned positively. In addition, de Weck had stepped up lobbying for SRG. On the negative side, the dispute with private publishers triggered by Admeira and the expansion of the online offering. In addition, de Weck has generally not succeeded in leading SRG into calm waters. (hae/NZZaS)
Header image: Photo Roger de Weck: SRG SSR / Zeljko Gataric; Photo Gilles Marchand: SRG SSR / Marcel Grubenmann
Discussions are currently taking place with associations in the television and radio industry and with Swiss-German media. Thanks to cooperation, costs can be reduced for everyone and, in the best case, revenues can be increased, de Weck said at a media meeting in Bern on Tuesday. There is currently contact with the Swiss Media Association, which represents the interests of the private media, but no negotiations yet. However, he said, he was confident that this would happen. In recent months, a dispute between the private publishers and the SRG had ignited over the definition of public service.
More funds for all
de Weck sees possible cooperation in three areas: joint marketing of advertising, selective exchange of content, and joint use of the digital infrastructure. Such cooperation would leave more money in the coffers of all media companies. This money could be reinvested in journalism. However, SRG could not make its offerings available to other media houses free of charge in the sense of open source. De Weck pointed out that copyrights in sports, films and series, and music, for example, make free offers impossible. In addition, in the case of open source, the content would also have to be provided free of charge to Netflix or to commercial German broadcasters.
Blur boundaries
The SRG is prohibited from many forms of online advertising. In this context, De Weck pointed out that the boundaries between traditional broadcasting and broadband Internet are becoming increasingly blurred. A clear demarcation under media law is becoming increasingly difficult. De Weck reiterated the proposal submitted by the SRG to the Federal Media Commission to introduce a threshold for the SRG's advertising volume. If the threshold were exceeded, a considerable portion of this money could be used for indirect press promotion or for the sda news agency.
Tight financial dress
When asked how SRG fees and advertising revenues will develop in the coming years, de Weck was realistic. These revenues are likely to decrease. Accordingly, the financial situation is tight. De Weck recalled that SRG is currently cutting 250 jobs. But he did not want to complain. Relatively speaking, SRG is doing well. According to Gilles Marchand, Director of Westschweizer Radio und Fernsehen, and Ladina Heimgartner, Director of Rhaeto-Romanic Radio und Fernsehen, SRG must be present on all distribution channels in the future, on TV, smart TV, radio, the Internet and social media. It has to be where its customers are. A costly trend for TV providers is that audiences skip advertising when they watch TV at a later time. According to a study, the Swiss media will lose around 130 million Swiss francs a year as a result. However, Marchand and de Weck are convinced that linear television is not dead. On the contrary, its reach has recently increased slightly again, they say. (SDA)
Image: OBS/SRG SSR/Danielle Liniger
The program has triggered a public debate on how to deal with religions, says Matter. This is a desired effect of SRF programs. However, the TV director does not address the question of whether a presenter who calls his guest "pubescent", a "pompous guy" and even an "asshole" after the show is still acceptable. Instead, Matter refers to the statement by editor-in-chief Tristan Brenn. He had described the "Schawinski" show with Andreas Thiel as "unsuccessful", but did not want to turn it into a fundamental issue. In the talk show, Koran critic and satirist Andreas Thiel was supposed to comment on his controversial Islam article in the Weltwoche. From the very first minute, however, the show was characterized by spitefulness and there was no objective discussion at any time.
"The two scaredy-cats at the top"
As the NZZ am Sonntag knows, SRF employees as well as TV boss Matter and SRG Director General Roger de Weck are generally dissatisfied with the talk show, which has been running since 2011. This naturally raises the question of why the show was not canceled on this occasion. The newspaper asked around at Leutschenbach and wants to know the reason: They were afraid of Schawinski's reaction if he was thrown out. Schawinski was a bitter critic of SRG for decades. Since he has had his own SRF program, he has been much more reserved in his comments towards Leutschenbach - a development that not only Roger Köppel is likely to have noticed. Köppel constantly accuses Schawinski of the sudden SRG mildness in the program "Roger gegen Roger". The SRG bosses don't seem to be in the mood for the old acrimony. The NZZ am Sonntag quotes a television journalist: "Schawinski's unspeakable show remains in the program because of the two scaredy-cats at the top.
Ombudsman has his hands full
The scandal in the interview with Andreas Thiel is keeping the ombudsman busy. According to SDA, Achille Casanova had received 65 complaints by Friday afternoon. All but five of the complaints are directed against the way in which Schawinski dealt with Thiel. According to Casanova, the critics described the interview as "inadequate, provocative, rude, disrespectful or insulting". Next, Casanova must confirm each complaint individually. He will then forward the objections to the SRF editorial team for a statement. Only then will he issue a report on whether a complaint is justified or not. This report must be submitted within 40 days of receipt. (hae/NZZaS/SDA)
On the question of whether public service could not be financed at lower cost, Roger de Weck recalls, as in the previous "Medien-Club," that the SRG in Switzerland, with its four national languages, has to make disproportionately greater financial efforts. ZDF, for example, has 40 percent more funds available for monolingual television than SRG has for radio and television in four languages. Moreover, due to the high fixed costs of broadcasting, a reduction of the 24 channels would not have much effect.
The SRG Director General attaches importance to responding to media change. He wants to develop specific audiovisual offerings for the Internet that interact with the channels. As an example, he mentions the Do-it-yourself radiowhich allows users to put together their own program from the content of the various SRG radio channels using an app.
Commenting on the conflict with the media houses over fee-financed competition on the Internet, de Weck says he has made an "attractive offer" to the publishers: newspapers would be allowed to embed SRG videos on their websites in return for a share of the advertising revenue. "For smaller newspapers, these would be minimal contributions, and for larger newspapers, moderate contributions," de Weck said. That would be appropriate, he said, because fee payers would not want to subsidize media companies like Tamedia with 15 percent returns. The public service is free for private use, but not for commercial use. He generally disliked the idea of selling off journalistic services. In response to the publishers' call for SRG to charge for its Internet offering, de Weck says Blick and 20 Minuten have more visitors than SRF. And to his knowledge, SRF would not make life more difficult for the NZZ. But it continues to focus on audiovisual content and "doesn't waste a second on making newspapers.
Good journalism cannot be industrialized
The proposal by Avenir Suisse that SRG should become a "content provider" (Werbewoche.ch reported), de Weck replies on the one hand that good journalism cannot be industrialized. On the other hand, the only competitive Swiss channel would disappear with this model. Private broadcasters would never be able to fill this gap, since expensive audiovisual productions in small Switzerland are a loss-making business. SRG has the critical mass to compete with foreign providers. In addition, the SRG contributes to media diversity, since otherwise only one media house offering sound would remain in French-speaking Switzerland, Bern or Graubünden. (hae/NZZaS)
Image: Keystone
If, in the course of the new system, almost all households would have to pay the fee, the previously industry-standard assumption by the employer would no longer be appropriate, SRF spokesman Daniel Steiner told the NZZ am Sonntag. Until now, SRG paid the entire fee for its full-time employees, and for part-time employees either the radio or TV fees. Since 2012, the board of directors, and since a year ago, management and upper management have been paying the fee themselves. Now the remaining 5200 employees are to follow suit, saving SRG CHF 2.5 million a year. Since the Billag fee is anchored as a salary component in the collective labor agreement, the implementation of de Weck's plan is likely to be difficult. The Swiss Syndicate of Media Workers is demanding that the cancellation be compensated for in some other way and is calling for proposals from SRG's top management to that end. (hae/NZZaS)
Image: Keystone
In the neighboring country, a dispute is raging over nepotism in the appointment of key ORF positions, as the Sonntagszeitung writes. The reason for this was the editors' complaint against the appointment of journalist Thomas Prantner as ORF online chief, whose position had been created especially for him by an internal patron. In this heated climate, the working group must now draw up reform proposals for the ORF.
The fact that the SRG Director General is now offering himself as an expert abroad is piquant: his company has just completed four difficult rounds of wage negotiations with representatives of its employees. The talks have failed for the time being. SRG employees may find themselves without a collective labor agreement for the first time in years.
SSM Secretary Ernst Gräub is one of those who are disappointed with de Weck. The fact that he is now offering his services as an expert abroad, of all places, makes him shake his head. According to Gräub, de Weck should first and foremost ensure that he can achieve a good social partnership in his own company. FDP media politician Filippo Leutenegger also criticizes the behaviour of the SRG Director General: "In this situation in which the SRG finds itself - keywords: falling market share, convergence - the priority should be on the domestic market," he is quoted as saying in the Sonntagszeitung. And SVP National Councillor Natalie Rickli is surprised that De Weck has time to travel to Vienna as an expert.
Roger de Weck traveled to Vienna by invitation, SRG Head of Communications Iso Rechsteiner told the Sonntagspublikation. It was not a mandate, he also emphasized.
(Image: Keystone)
]]>With the help of Natalie Rickli, Aktion Gebührenmonster collected over 140,000 online signatures for a petition to reduce SRG fees. SRG Director Roger de Weck argues in public in a level-headed manner, seeking consensus. Behind the scenes, however, de Weck is acting much more aggressively, according to Klaus Kappeler, CEO of Goldbach Media and thus Natalie Rickli's employer. According to Tagesanzeiger.ch, Kappeler states in a separate interview with TA that de Weck had demanded that Rickli be killed. He had told him, "I bring Goldbach into play in connection with Ms. Rickli to put you under pressure." If Goldbach did not publicly distance himself from Rickli, he said, he would bring Goldbach into play. "I know there's no connection, but I'm doing it anyway," Kappeler reproduces de Weck's remarks, according to Tagesanzeiger.ch.
Goldbach Media markets, among other things, the Swiss advertising windows of foreign private broadcasters and has an interest in the largest possible and free electronic media market in Switzerland. However, this market is dominated by SRG and its subsidiary Publisuisse as the marketer. By claiming that Rickli is only politically implementing what her employer demands of her out of economic-political interest, one can undermine her credibility as a fighter for lower fees.
Roger de Weck did not want to comment on Kappeler's statements to the Tages-Anzeiger. These statements were absurd, said SRG spokesman Daniel Steiner only.
The Swiss Syndicate of Media Professionals SSM has been in a Opinion commented on this. The communiqué in the wording:
"Goldbach Media CEO Klaus Kappeler criticizes SRG Director General Roger de Weck for wanting to know in February (!) what the company thought of the anti-SRG campaigns of her manager wife Natalie Rickli. Kappeler criticizes SRG for putting Goldbach Media and Rickli under pressure. The SSM considers this absurd! The SVP politician Natalie Rickli attacks the SRG hard again and again and wants to weaken the broadcasting company massively. That is her political right. But Rickli is also professionally active in the media sector at the company Goldbach Media. There, she is not just any employee, but a member of the management of Goldbach Media in a management function. Goldbach Media markets advertising for major competitors (SAT 1, Pro 7, RTL) of SRG and would therefore benefit from a weakening of SRG. It is nothing but understandable and logical for the SRG director general to want to know from Goldbach Media what the company's position is on the anti-SRG statements made by its executive Rickli. Kappeler's late complaint looks like well-timed election campaigning by Natalie Rickli. The SSM demands that the media company Goldbach Media say where it stands on the media policy attacks against SRG by its executive Rickli."
(Image: Keystone)
> To the article on Tagesanzeiger.ch