German newspapers and broadcasters often reported imbalanced and superficially about the Greek national debt crisis in the first half of 2015, researchers at Würzburg University have reported in a study. Most of the reporting was comment-oriented and judgemental they found in a study done for the trade-union affiliated Hans-Böckler Foundation.

It found that members of the Greek government were mostly negatively portrayed. The dailies examined were so-called quality broadsheets and Germany’s biggest circulation Bild with 1.3 million sales daily. Many dismiss Bild asa scandal rag. A joke about it is that blood oozes out when you open it up.

Altogether 1,442 articles were reported on the debt crisis. The researchers found that too little space was given to Greece’s reform efforts. Instead the journalists gave too much attention to the aid programmes, as well as treating as a “side show” Greek demands for reparations for Nazi atrocities in World War II. Many articles ignored matters in dispute but often referred to “Grexit” as a possible consequence. Few articles had delivered deep background on the crisis.

Bild did not have a single article that was positive about Greece. In 45 percent of the coverage the journalists took positions opposed to those of the Greek government. Only 16 percent of its reports were positive and 39 percent neutral.

Too little attention was given to journalistic quality criteria like balance and neutrality, the report’s authors found. The coverage contributed to stirring mistrust and insecurity in the population.

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The study was sharply critical of the two German public broadcasters, ARD and ZDF. Its lead author, Professor Kim Otto and his team at Würzburg University looked at all current affairs’ coverage of the Greek debt crisis last year and said they found substantial shortcomings.

“Public broadcasters are duty-bound to balance. That includes fair and independent reporting and the duty to remain non-partisan. Unfortunately, these quality mandates were only partially met,” Prof Otto said in summing up his team’s findings.

Much of their reporting was not even-handed, the study found, and the Greek government was given less exposure than other actors and was criticised more often. In only 10 percent of reports on the crisis the Greek government was given space to put forward its views, Prof Otto’s team found. The German government had twice as much say.

Moreover, the Greek government was criticised by journalists 10 times more often than were described positively. In this respect as well, the German government was portrayed only twice as often negatively as positively.

The ARD response rejected the study’s findings.

“We reported on the Greek finance crisis very extensively, analytically and (were) journalistically balanced. Over months a large number of different, including international experts were put on,” said ARD chief editor, Rainald Becker. “The views of all relevant decision makers in politics were also extensively aired.

“The main points of the discussions at EU level and in the German and Greek Parliaments were aired wherever journalistically appropriate,” said Mr Becker.

The study’s researchers found that the duty of keeping news and opinion strictly separate and the duty of staying neutral was not adhered to. In every tenth report journalists were judgemental in their reporting on Greek and German governments.
“Separation of news and opinion must be more consistently adhered to, especially in off-camera texts in reports,” Prof Otto stated.

He said the reporting of the Greek reform policy focused on only a few reform proposals and stayed widely superficial. In a large number of news items there was only general reference to “the reforms”.

Mr Becker said the methodology and system employed in the study was more than problematic and would produce a distorted judgment.
“What is neutrality? What is analytical quality? What is even-handedness. The study defines these concepts mostly qualitatively and not by journalistically relevant yardsticks,” said the ARD chief editor.