Is Germany´s media to blame for the inexorable rise of the AfD? | Ben Knight
(The Guardian Germany)

The way journalists do business with politicians - being spoonfed - is a cosy arrangement that invites disruptionPolitical journalists in Berlin often do a thing called Hintergrundgespräch. This `background conversation` involves gathering in an airless room of a ministry or a party headquarters with a group of favoured colleagues and some alpha politician who then tells you what´s what. Or what´s really what. The mood is relaxed and pally. Recording devices are not allowed, and although notes may be taken, direct quotes can´t be used. Free drinks are provided. The first time I went to a Hintergrundgespräch, not long ago, a heavy realisation dawned on me: this is why people hate us. This is why people vote for the far-right AfD. It looks a lot like a cosy arrangement: journalists being spoonfed their stories by politicians. Related: Poland`s president addresses far right at independence march The refugee crisis was the moment when 15 years of frustration with complacent centrism crystallised into a party Related: Far-right German party expels member for photo of Hitler wine labels Continue reading...