Markus Braun: Why we find an interview with him important

One can ask if it is right to offer Markus Braun a platform if such serious allegations are made against him. It may well be that he tries to star-InterView to improve the public image of itself. We still find his statements relevant in the interview. For us, it is a document of contemporary history in one of the most spectacular economic thrillers that Germany has ever experienced. And like all defendants, Braun is entitled to hear his view of the scandal and the allegations against him. Our job as journalists and also that of the star As a medium, it is to inform, question and classify facts. In the end, lawyers rate whether Braun has violated quite a violation. The presumption of innocence applies to the judgment.

You can read the entire interview here.

The exchange took place in view of the pre -trial detention under special conditions. Braun agreed an interview on his defender Theres Krausslach months ago, but only in writing. So the star an extensive questionnaire. Before Braun’s answers went to the editorial office, the responsible judge had to give his approval.

We would always prefer a personal interview. In this case, however, no interview would have been possible. The written form of the interview makes it difficult to confront the interviewees with contradictions or ambiguities in his statements. That is why we tried to classify Braun’s statements in the overall context, with the presentation of the positions of other defendants and witnesses. Jan Marsalek’s lawyer did not respond to our request. And Oliver Bellenhaus wanted to oppose that star do not express them publicly.

Another problem arose last week. After the interview was managed and released, “Spiegel”, ZDF and the Russian platform “The Insider” published research in which they found Jan Marsalek in Moscow. In such a case, we would usually contact our interviewees and update the interview point in which we talk about Marsalek’s whereabouts. This was not possible in this complex situation, which is why the position unchanged – and therefore possibly somewhat outdated – had to stop in the interview.

As a rule, you meet for an interview in person or at least on the phone. The journalist asks questions that the interviewee answers her. Journalists then react to the answers, hooks or ask questions of understanding. This is how a conversation arises.

After that, the journalists write on this conversation that they shorten in most cases and edit the questions and answers so that the text is easy to read. In Germany it is common to present the text to the interviewee again so that it can make corrections if necessary.

Especially in interviews in which interlocutors describe their impressions and experiences, it is essential to contact all persons against whom allegations are made in the interviews. Everyone must have the opportunity to comment. We would have loved to hear the perspectives of Oliver Bellenhaus and Jan Marsalek, to whom Braun reproaches Braun in an interview, and made Braun’s statements. At the request of the star the lawyers of the two did not want to react publicly.

The star Publements numerous texts, videos, live tickers, photo stretches and other content every day. A large part of it, especially the latest news and information, is free of charge for our readers. At the same time, a selection of articles is only accessible to our subscribers, because good journalism costs money. More than 100 permanent reporters write for the staryour work must be paid appropriately. Behind the interview with Markus Braun, there are many months of work by several members of the editorial team and a free journalist who receives a fee for this.