February 28, 2025 - 4:00pm
“Orwellian” is an overused adjective in our post-Covid, technologically advanced modern world. Yet it is the perfect description of Germany’s new advice centre for people who have friends or family prone to “conspiracy thinking”. The country’s Ministry of the Interior is offering help and material to combat the “wrongthink” of those affected, supposedly to stop the spread of fake news and misinformation.
This sounds harmless enough in an age when AI can mimic voices and misinformation can spread rapidly. Just this week, an audio clip spread on social media purporting to show Donald Trump Jr advocating for taking Russia’s side in the Ukraine war. It transpired that this was artificially generated, but it was sufficiently convincing to fool many online.
People who believe that the world is run by shape-shifting lizards, that the radio is talking to them, or that they are being spied on by pigeons are indeed in need of psychological support. Yet these institutions already exist in Germany, so why would SPD minister Nancy Faeser see the need for an additional one?
The answer to this question becomes clearer if one digs a bit deeper. The centre is not run by the state, but instead by a number of “NGOs” that are Left-wing extensions of a supposedly neutral state. One of these organisations is the Amadeu Antonio Foundation, which has a lot of experience in creating institutions for the sole purpose of getting Germans to snitch on one another. For example, in July 2022 the Foundation established an office to report “antifeminist activities”, with the aim of documenting incidents “below the threshold of criminal liability”. This is similar to the loathed “non-crime hate incidents” in the UK.
Cases of so-called anti-feminism were, according to the Foundation, not just “organized campaigns against gender-neutral language”, but also “attacks on queer people and institutions”. Interestingly, traditional feminist positions such as the fight against prostitution or misogynistic oppression associated with Islam were not mentioned. In essence, the office was created to document a specific form of non-progressive behaviour and pass that knowledge on to the state.
This might sound like hyperbole, but it is not. In the summer of 2024, a German chef wanted to distribute flyers promoting a street food festival. The flyers contained the following sentence: “Immerse yourself in the exotic world of Asian street food.” The word “exotic” was reported as it could be interpreted as describing “people or cultures as foreign, different and outside the norm”, and so Berlin’s local government sent a letter to the organiser, demanding a change to the wording. This letter failed to note that the chef was from Hanoi. Optimists could say that it “was only a letter”, but they would be disregarding the chilling effect that usually follows such actions. By forcing the removal of the word “exotic” on flyers, politicians are not executing the law — they are trying to blackmail innocent citizens into ideological compliance.
As a result, the new centre for combatting conspiratorial misinformation ought to be met with scepticism. This new initiative is designed to collect information on people and organisations who hold the wrong kinds of views — not illegal views — with the aim of “deprogramming” them. These are not the activities of a liberal state. This is Soviet Union-style paranoia, where everyone is encouraged to spy on their neighbours.
Conspiracy theories, outright lies and misinformation can radicalise unsavoury characters in our societies and lead them to commit atrocities. This is the sort of counter-terrorism Germany should be focusing on, rather than targeting those who refuse to subscribe to Left-wing nostrums. Friedrich Merz, likely to be the next chancellor, has an opportunity to get off on the right foot by scrapping this nonsense immediately.
Ralph Schoellhammer is assistant professor of International Relations at Webster University, Vienna.
Raphfel
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SubscribeThought crime was criminalised some time ago in UK.
I am going to say this again. Yet another article on the attacks on free speech from abroad. But never a single article in Unherd drawing attention to all the people in England in prison because they tweet or say or Facebook the wrong thing!
Not a single writer willing to attack our non-crime hate incidents and our hate laws.
I can only conclude Unherd supports the UK’s laws or is under instructions to ignore what is happening to protect Starmer.
Does anyone else have an explanation?
https://unherd.com/newsroom/britains-hate-crime-laws-are-eroding-free-speech/
I remember that article well and she was heavily criticised in the comments for making the Pearson incident purely about the danger non hate crime police visits pose to women journalists.
The problem is far wider and more serious. People are imprisoned for 3 years for wrong-speak. And not a single journalist at Unherd criticises this.
Vance attacked UK for its failings and this was also ignored by Unherd.
Nice job of monopolizing the Comments. I guess that’s why everyone likes you so much.
Please – a “non hate crime” would be something like fraud or driving while uninsured, there being no element of hatred in the motivation. But of course it’s difficult to say why police are involved in any “non crime” incidents.
So this is what Vance was talking about.
There is no mention of prison sentences for such wrong-speak though in which case Germany is nothing like England.
When will Unherd invite someone to make the case for why free speech is a fundamental human right. And why any country which criminalises dissent is a totalitarian state.
UK is one of only four countries where a Facebook post can lead to a prison sentence.
Why do none of you protest?
Why does Unherd hide this fact?
Unherd is a disgrace.
England is a disgrace
Well, there’s nothing to stop you pitching the idea to UnHerd. If it helps, you’d have my support.
That’s kind of you. I have tried a few times. Unfortunately I do spend a lot of time communicating with their Audience and Members Experience department (very Unherd isn’t it?) so I think it unlikely.
In case anyone is wondering it is where the AI support spits you out to when it can’t digest you.
And will probably feature in next year’s Pixar animated blockbuster …
Why are the English so cowered, so afraid, to stand up for their right to have an opinion?
It is a pathetic sight.
i’m english i’m not cowed by any of this, it fact it emboldened me . the more they crack down on criticism of say Islam, the more i criticise and mock it, for it deserves to be mocked
The writer thinks this “centre for combating misinformation” should be met with “scepticism”.
No, it should be closed. It’s the Stasi state in everything but name.
With the same people from Stasi doing the same job.
Wait, the radio isn’t talking to me? But I’m sure I hear voices, music even. Of course the weather predictions are obvious fictions, but still….
You should immediately move to Berlin and report yourself to that Centre, because, as the author puts it, “conspiracy theories, outright lies and misinformation can radicalise unsavoury characters* in our societies and lead them to commit atrocities. ” (Oh horror!!!!) 😉
—
Correction: “radicalise even the best people” – V.Z.
—Conspiracy theories, outright lies and misinformation can radicalise unsavoury characters in our societies and lead them to commit atrocities. —–
Really? Doesn’t sound very convincing to me, frankly.
Maybe I am wrong and if someone could provide explanations/examples, I would be grateful, but for now remain highly skeptical.
Voltaire: “Those who convince persons to believe absurdities can convince them to commit atrocities”. This is from 1700.
Well, I know this aphorism. Also, Bertrand Russel’s about f_scism, “First, they fascinate the fools. Then, they muzzle the intelligent”.
Still, was wondering to what extent this might be applicable in the context of the article. What we are witnessing are atrocities committed almost exclusively by people belonging to a certain faith (i.e., not a conspiracy theory), while, frankly, I don’t see a particular threat from people who, for example, believe in chemtrails – however bizzare and unfounded this conspiracy theory really is.
The Centre in question seems to be focused on the latter kind of people.
The 1994 Genocide in Rwanda is a good example of conspiracy theories, outright lies and misinformation radicalising a large part of the population to commit atrocities. Plenty of books written on this.
Indeed, that’s a convincing example, thank you. I didn’t think about it, I must acknowledge.
This idea needs to be met with something more than scepticism.
.
Lazy research: The site for reporting “anti-feminist” incident explicitly says: “Please note that as a matter of principle, no real names or personal data of other persons may be communicated.” It’s not about snitching, it’s about raising awareness that such things happen.
Much ado about nothing. Everyone knows the German conspiracy thinking advice centre will be used by no one and will be defunded by the next government.