Cancel culture instead of diversity of opinion: NDR parts ways with conservative presenter Julia Ruhs

German journalist Julia Ruhs writes that she is disappointed and stunned. Norddeutscher Rundfunk had recently announced the dismissal of the 31-year-old presenter from its program. This followed months of hostility and intrigue, even from her own colleagues. Ruhs merely represents a conservative perspective, one that is clearly underrepresented in the public media system.

With the program "Klar," which launched in the spring and is produced by NDR and Bayerischer Rundfunk, Ruhs and her team aimed to address current controversial topics such as the increase in violence due to uncontrolled migration and the social consequences of coronavirus policies, while also giving critics a voice. They deliberately aimed to reach out to people who previously felt unrepresented by public broadcasting or who had even turned away from it.

This claim not only complies with the Interstate Broadcasting Treaty, but also clearly struck a chord with the audience. Reactions to the three episodes broadcast so far have been positive. According to a representative survey, more than 60 percent of respondents rated the show as good or very good.

Internally, however, the editorial team was accused of making serious technical errors and spreading right-wing sentiment. Resistance quickly formed against Ruhs. Jan Böhmermann of ZDF called the program "right-wing populist nonsense." His NDR colleague Anja Reschke dismissed the program as "a bit right-wing extremist."

When the criticism finally became too loud, NDR backpedaled and had Carola Conze, the deputy head of NDR's main department, explain that Reschke's comments were a satirical exaggeration. However, numerous media outlets had already reported on how a young journalist was being vilified and pushed into a right-wing corner within her own broadcaster. The editors-in-chief watched idly for weeks.

When the NDR editorial team wanted to discuss the launch of the new series "Klar" in April, according to an investigation by "Welt," a scandal erupted. NDR colleagues handed the program managers an open letter signed by 250 employees. The letter cited violations of journalistic due diligence and described the program as disturbing, superficial, and hostile toward migrants.

About a month later, "Klar" and the criticism of the format are once again a topic of discussion at a meeting with the editorial committee. The event is moderated by Anja Reschke.

Ruhs, who completed her traineeship at Bayerischer Rundfunk, quickly became known and was perceived as a young conservative voice with strong opinions on social media. The first shitstorm hit her after a comment about "gender nonsense" on the "ARD-Mittagsmagazin," which she narrated as a trainee in 2021. On the "Tagesthemen" program, she advocated for a tougher asylum policy – ​​which also caused a stir.

Ruhs continued to build her brand as a young, bourgeois journalist, got her own column at "Focus online," and wrote a book with the provocative title: "Left-Green Opinion Power: The Division of Our Country."

"In any case, many seem to have forgotten how to tolerate conflicting opinions," it states. Opinions should be painful, allowed to be an imposition. They should challenge the other side, demand something of them: namely, tolerance. Ruhs repeatedly addresses how left-wing positions dominate on public broadcasting, and how other opinions aren't even heard .

On Wednesday, NDR and Bayerischer Rundfunk announced in a joint statement that the "Klar" format would be continued. However, NDR intends to seek a new presenter. The original editor-in-chief, Thomas Berbner, is also expected to leave. Julia Ruhs will continue to be the face of the show at BR. Apparently, those in charge of programming at ARD are also divided on how much diversity of opinion viewers can be expected to experience.