Germany Bans Right Wing Media Outlet Ahead Of September Regional Elections
Germany’s interior ministry has banned Compact – a nationalist German media outlet – on Tuesday after accusing it of being a “mouthpiece of the right-wing extremist scene.”
- Interior Minister Nancy Faeser issued bans on Compact magazine, its publisher Compact-Magazin GmbH, and Conspect Film, a film production company as police conducted raids on associated properties and residences across Germany.
- Faeser claimed that “this magazine agitates in an unspeakable way against Jews, against people with a history of migration and against our parliamentary democracy.”
- She also said that the ban shows “that we are also taking action against the intellectual arsonists who are stirring up a climate of hatred and violence against refugees and migrants and want to overcome our democratic state”
Background: Founded in 2010 by Jürgen Elsässer, Compact magazine’s close ties to the nationalist wing of Alternative for Germany (AfD) has led to scrutiny from the German government and corporations.
- In 2020, Meta’s Facebook and Instagram social media platforms removed Compact’s accounts over claims of hate speech.
- Compact was officially classified as extremist, nationalist and anti-minority by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution in 2021.