The self-appointed custodians of the German news media are convinced that members of the public cannot evaluate the news responsibly for themselves, and need to be protected and taken care of like little children — for their own good, of course. A recent example from a television news program provides a glimpse into what’s going on. Presumably there are many additional instances in which news is suppressed, but which never surface into public awareness.

Nash Montana has translated two brief articles about what happened in Bremen. First, from Politically Incorrect:

Tagesschau: No new reports about violent terrorism

As easy as that: Because Germans, as a consequence of terror attacks, rapes and other violent crime committed by Merkel’s guests, develop an “over-proportional feeling of insecurity and fear”, and therefore might even vote for the wrong party, the NDR-produced “Tagesschau” [“Daily News”, the most traditional daily news show on German Television since December 26th, 1952 — translator] decided to “impose a certain voluntary restraint concerning reports about violence”. You don’t believe it? Read for yourself!

Here’s the inconceivable answer of the Tagesschau…

The article switches to Achse des Guten:

A viewer wanted to know why Tagesschau was omitting a report on the evacuation of a Bremen mall due to a terrorist threat. Therefore he wrote the following email to the editors:

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

On July 27, 2016, due to an assumed terror threat, the large Weser Park Mall in Bremen was evacuated.

A — supposedly — psychologically ill Algerian asylum seeker who fled from the psychiatric ward with the words “I will blow you all up” was assumed to be in the mall by the Bremen police, because a witness thought they recognized him on a photo. Also, over the weekend the man had made statements to the police about the amok shooter in Munich and about IS-Terror.

The asylum seeker has been classified by the police as dangerous to self and others, and was addicted to drugs. On the next day, he was set free again, because the Bremen police suddenly claimed that the Algerian had made “trustworthy” assertions that he was not at Weser Park Mall and that anyway, he didn’t mean anything by it.

And all that is not worthy of a report to Tagesschau! What gives?

I am asking for an answer.

With friendly regards,
Joachim Robrecht

And the answer follows:

Dear Herr Robrecht,

Thank you very much for your email. Please be understanding that we only now have responded to you, as at the moment we have a lot of viewer mail.

The past few weeks with so many terrible news stories have set into motion a discussion process in our studio, during the course of which we have had once more to examine ourselves and our responsibility towards society. We have therefore decided to impose a certain voluntary restraint concerning reports about violence. There are two reasons for this. On the one hand it has been proven that berserkers and other violent criminals inspire copycats. The incidents over the past few weeks should hold, in shocking clarity, sufficient proof of this thesis. But on the other hand a disproportionate feeling of insecurity and fear within the citizenry has also developed through these reports about violence. While the possibility of becoming the victim of a terror attack or of someone running amok in no way is increasing, the subjective feeling of one’s self-safety is being severely disturbed.

We are aware that now the accusation will be made against us that we are maliciously concealing facts. But we can assure you that if we do that, it is only for media-ethical reasons and out of a sense of responsibility towards society.

We thank you for your comments and we hope that you will remain a critical viewer.

With warm greetings,
Viewership service ARD-aktuell