Hilljes election campaign check: These media strategies are not suitable for chancellor


Hilljes election campaign check
These media strategies are not suitable for the chancellor

A column by Johannes Hillje

Annalena Baerbock does not give the “Bild am Sonntag” an interview, Armin Laschet goes to the “Heilbronn Voice”, but not to ProSieben. Media strategies that can be explained, but not suitable for the chancellor.

Making headlines without saying anything. Annalena Baerbock achieved this feat two days ago. The chancellor candidate had turned down the “Bild am Sonntag” for an interview. The newspaper then printed an (almost) completely blank page with a reproachful reference to Baerbock’s rejection. The story continued on Monday: In Micky Beisenherz’s podcast, for which the Greens took just under an hour, she explained her interview policy as follows: “In 2021, for me, ‘being in contact’ means above all the podcast, audience and Instagram. ” This is Baerbock’s digital-time interpretation of Gerhard Schröder’s media mantra “To rule I need ‘image’, ‘BamS’ and telly”. But is Baerbock’s media mix really enough to govern?

First back to the white paper in the “BamS”: The blank newspaper page is as striking as the election advertising of the parties on the street lamps. With the difference that she printed an editorial team instead of an election campaign team. It is not the first time that the boundaries between these roles are blurring in the “Bild” newspaper, especially when it comes to reporting on the Greens. It seems plausible that the decision to give so much space to such a large audience for so much emptiness was based on personal sensitivities instead of journalistic relevance criteria. We don’t live in news-poor times. So a suspicion arises: Because the editors were unable to turn any statement from the desired interview against Baerbock, they draw attention to the rejection of the interview in a fluffy and striking way. Based on the communication theorist Marshall McLuhan (“the medium is the message”) one could say: the medium is malice.

Now to Baerbock. Since the incident, it has been hotly debated whether her refusal was discouraged or brave. The aspect of media relations, i.e. strategic relationship management with the media and media workers during the election campaign, does not only affect the Greens. Armin Laschet has also caused an uproar several times by refusing to speak. The Youtuber Rezo succeeded in scandalizing Laschet’s rejection with the most publicity. So the question arises: What are the criteria for the interview selection of the Chancellor candidates? Why does Laschet decide against ProSieben’s “Bundestag election show”, for example, but in favor of a 74-minute video interview with the “Heilbronn Voice”? And why does Annalena Baerbock cancel the biggest Sunday newspaper, but accept the Micky Beisenherz podcast with less audience?

Farmer’s rule from the pre-digital media system

The answers can be found indirectly in Baerbock’s statement (“Podcast, audience and Instagram”). It reveals two interesting developments in this election campaign.

First: A media public that has been plowed up by digitization and is characterized by more pluralization and fragmentation measured in terms of supply and demand, which in turn requires more segmentation in addressing voters. Over the past few months, the University of Hohenheim and Forsa have investigated the channels through which different age groups and party camps can be reached in this election campaign. Almost 50 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds watch the election campaign via social media, compared with only 12 percent of those over the age of 60, while the newspaper is still one of the most important sources of news for older people. The over-60-year-olds belong to the core electorate of the CDU / CSU, the under-30-year-olds are the core target group of the Greens. That is part of the explanation why Laschet goes to the “Heilbronner Voice” (especially since its catchment area is an important and now contested constituency for the CDU) and why Baerbock joins the podcast. Reaching the breadth of the electorate through the same channels is impossible today. Schröder’s “image, BamS and telly” is a farmer’s rule from the pre-digital media system. But of course it is not social media alone that organizes our public today. The current media system is hybrid, digital platforms are extremely important, but the classic media brands are also present there and broadcast there in addition to their traditional channels.

Second, Baerbock’s statement marks a readjustment of the target group definition of the Greens. For completeness: A few days ago Baerbock gave the “Frankfurter Rundschau” a lengthy, exclusive interview. The Greens also reach their now narrower target group through this smaller, more left-wing daily newspaper. Not so long ago the Greens claimed to be a people’s party that just doesn’t want to be called that. The aim, according to Robert Habeck in November 2020, is “to get out of a narrow milieu and make an offer to the broader society”. Shortly thereafter, and at that time actually true to the motto “the medium is the message”, Baerbock expressed her ambition for the candidacy for chancellor for the first time in a newspaper with which she apparently wanted to speak about the “breadth of society”: exactly, the “Bild am Sonntag” . Today, nineteen days before the election, the target group of the Greens has narrowed. In the media mix of your campaign communication, formats are prioritized that tend to reach younger and more left-wing target groups. Today, the Greens are concerned with securing groups of voters who were once believed to be safe and who could now be tempted to drag Olaf Scholz into the Chancellery instead of Armin Laschet.

Whoever wants to govern has to be able to talk to everyone

So far, according to the election campaign, in which addressing target groups is an important discipline. Likewise, error avoidance, which, as is well known, has failed several times this year. But Laschet would hardly have won any votes with Rezo, but could certainly have provided “cringe” moments that would have immediately led to negative headlines in other media. He probably wanted to avoid this disgrace. Baerbock’s rejection of the “BamS” was also largely driven by fear. And so one can say that Laschet and Baerbock’s interview policy follows a strategy, but not necessarily a chancellor’s strategy. Rather, it is behavior that reveals the deficits in their strategic communication skills. Everyone who wants to move into the Chancellery has to deal with uncomfortable but socially relevant media and influencers. In order to be able to govern for the breadth of society, one must be able to talk to the breadth of the media landscape. And that doesn’t mean “BamS” or Beisenherz, but “BamS” and Beisenherz.

With reach giants, you have to build long-term relationships and communication channels, especially behind the scenes. Then, as a rule, an agreement on the terms of an interview or debate format can also be found. In essence, Gerhard Schröder meant nothing else: If you want to govern, you shouldn’t have the opinion-makers with an audience of millions as your opponent. It doesn’t require companionship, but it does require a basis for conversation. By the way, the only one who has not yet been noticed with a refusal to speak in this election campaign is Olaf Scholz.

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