As moderator Markus Lanz was able to show the AfD politician by comparing the original excerpt from his show and the subsequent misleading reporting by “Nius”, von Storch’s rendition was an inadmissible shortening and misrepresentation of Günther’s statements. The CDU politician’s appearance on January 7th actually triggered a debate about his attitude to freedom of expression and media freedom, but his words were sometimes misquoted.
Not only did Von Storch find himself in a clear need to explain, but he also had to endure the final lecture from the moderator. “You know, the kind of freedom of expression that people like you always think of, and that’s also the kind of freedom of speech that JD Vance thinks of, that’s always exactly the one that suits him at the moment, and I have a huge problem with that,” accused Lanz von Storch angrily.
