A regional newspaper in Germany has cut parts of an AfD mayoral candidate’s interview, accused him of extremist rhetoric, and sent his remarks to the authorities—prompting the AfD to accuse the press of bias and censorship.
The Lippische Landes-Zeitung in North Rhine-Westphalia removed several passages from its interview with 53-year-old Jirka Möller, a family man and trained chef who has lived in Extertal for six years, claiming his statements could be “unconstitutional” or show “far-right extremist tendencies.” The LZ did not print the interview in full, repeatedly interrupting it with italicised “fact-checks” challenging or correcting his claims.
These included dismissing his remark that the federal government is controlled by a “New World Order” as a “right-wing conspiracy theory without evidence,” and correcting his claim that the AfD’s classification as “secured far-right extremist” had been withdrawn—noting it was only “publicly suspended” pending court proceedings.
Other fact-checks targeted his comments on Swiss pool entry rules, energy projects in South Africa, an alleged Islamist invasion ordered by Iran, Germany’s sovereignty, and his comparison of gender policies to “George Orwell.”
On 5 August, the paper announced it will henceforth comment on AfD interviews, label falsehoods, and report “potentially criminal” remarks.
A similar controversy arose in Aachen, where the Aachener Zeitung excluded the AfD from all 16 election forums. One editor said: “We comment very, very clearly—against the AfD. Consistently. There is no colleague who does not do that.”
The local AfD accused the paper of filtering political coverage and leaving “no room for neutral public debate.”
