Press release junge Welt: Trial on secret service monitoring of the daily newspaper junge Welt on 18 July in Berlin

The publisher is taking legal action against the fact that the national daily newspaper junge Welt, which is independent of parties, churches and companies, has been labelled as an anti-constitutional group in the domestic intelligence service›s report for many years.

The hearing will take place from 10 a.m. in the court building, Kirchstraße 7, 10557 Berlin, plenary hall (room 0416).

As the case concerns key issues of press freedom, it is expected to attract considerable media interest. Several newspapers and broadcasters - from the Berliner Zeitung and Saarländischer Rundfunk to media in Turkey and Greece - have already reported in advance. Representatives of the media trade unions DJU/Verdi and the German Journalists‹ Association have announced that they will be keeping a close eye on the trial.

Due to its Marxist orientation, the domestic secret service is accusing Junge Welt of not being a journalistic product but an ›extremist group of individuals‹ with subversive aims. The actions of the secret service cause considerable disadvantages for junge Welt, which is subject to the laws of the market, not only in its editorial work but also in advertising and distribution of the newspaper. This is the declared intention. The aim is to limit the relevance and ›effectiveness‹ of junge Welt and ›deprive it of its breeding ground‹, the German government admitted in May 2021 in response to a parliamentary question from the parliamentary group Die Linke. The publisher then filed a lawsuit in September 2021, which is now finally being heard.

I will be happy to answer any questions. Further information can be found at https://www.jungewelt.de/prozess/