Germany’s two major journalist associations have sharply criticised the United States over what they call a rapid deterioration in press freedom, following ABC’s cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live and CBS’s earlier ending of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They also appealed to US news organisations to stand firmly behind their journalists.
“We are witnessing a galloping erosion of press freedom and freedom of expression in the US,” said Mika Beuster, president of the German Journalists’ Association (DJV). He added that “the fact that (Donald) Trump and his MAGA entourage are firing shots at media professionals is reminiscent of the behaviour of authoritarian rulers.” In such a climate, he said, journalists need unequivocal backing from their broadcasters and newspapers. “ABC and CBS are mistaken. Their pre-emptive deference to Trump will not bring them peace; it will lead to further pressure.”
Beuster said that after the killing of Charlie Kirk in the US, mass attacks against critical journalists have also increased in Germany. “Here, the pressure does not come from the government but from right-wing populists and fanatical media haters on social networks,” he noted, pointing to hate comments and death threats inundating the account of ZDF presenter Dunja Hayali following her critical coverage of the Kirk case. “This is a warning sign for democratic dialogue… This must not become the norm. Haters must not be allowed to dominate the social mainstream,” Beuster said.
In a parallel statement, the German Union of Journalists (dju) within the ver.di trade union expressed alarm at mounting restrictions on the media and press freedom in the US. “We view with great concern that journalists and media professionals in the US are coming under increasing pressure,” said dju co-chair Lars Hansen. “When even a late-night show like Jimmy Kimmel’s is cancelled after critical comments about right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, it shows how far this development has already gone. What once seemed unthinkable in the US is now reality.”
The dju declared unconditional solidarity with all affected journalists and cited the case of ZDF Washington correspondent Elmar Theveßen, whom a former US ambassador to Berlin and close political ally of the American president labelled a “far-left instigator of violence” while calling for his visa to be revoked. “If international correspondents are obstructed in their work, journalistic pluralism is at risk,” Hansen said. “Critical journalism is increasingly being smeared by parts of the Trump administration as left-wing activism and no longer recognised as a legitimate element of democracy. Diversity of opinion is essential. Even uncomfortable voices must be heard. The US has always seen itself as a bulwark of democracy and free speech. That makes it all the more important to oppose such restrictions decisively.”
CNA
