“Activist Man” and Co. | The AfD's bully streamers

The streamer “Activist Mann” at the election party on Sunday in Magdeburg in conversation with Björn Höcke Photo: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa Sunday evening in Magdeburg, AfD election party. The back part of the hall is the press work area. Reports are written here, photos are uploaded and video contributions are produced here. In the middle of the press area is the extreme right-wing media activist Matthäus Westfal, who calls himself “Activist Mann”. He insults the “Spiegel” journalist Ann-Katrin Müller for minutes, aggressively asking her: “Are you German?” And he calls on her to “commit” to Germany. Westfal becomes loud and aggressive, he shouts at journalists who try to calm him down. At some point he says that “only pro-German media” is needed, anything else will lead to “national death.” Westfal's attack on the "Spiegel" journalist made headlines. The AfD federal leadership felt compelled to condemn the media activist's behavior and has announced that it will discuss further action at the next federal executive board meeting. It is doubtful how credible the distancing is and whether it will ensure that right-wing media activists change their behavior.

Ulrich Siegmund repeatedly praised streamers, and “Activist Mann” was personally welcomed at campaign rallies. Siegmund has recognized that right-wing media activists are increasing his reach. They broadcast campaign events for hours, broadcasting Siegmund and letting his fans have their say. There was always trouble.

The best-known example: again “Activist Mann” and this time a camera team from “Spiegel” at an AfD festival in Merseburg in August. The “Spiegel” team discovers the streamers from “Utopia TV”, a duo that has been broadcasting demos since the Corona protests. They run after the journalists, repeatedly shouting loudly and drawing attention to the journalists' presence. More and more people are following the “Spiegel” team, and “Activist Mann” is also joining the group. At some point, “Activist Man” has come uncomfortably close to the journalist, the journalist touches the streamer. He then pushes and begins to insult the journalist as “anti-German” and “left-wing extremist.” The mob around “Activist Mann” is enthusiastic, the “Spiegel” team is withdrawing from the AfD festival.

Videos in which he aggressively attacks media professionals are Westfal's specialty.

After the incident there was a gentle rebuke from Martin Reichardt, the AfD chairman in Saxony-Anhalt. The streamer was probably “a bit over it”. He was asked to exercise moderation. “Activist Mann” then explains that he wants to hold back until the election.

Matthäus Westfal has been associated with the AfD for around ten years. The man from East Westphalia says he is not a party member. He has also appeared in the past with the now deceased Holocaust denier Ursula Haverbeck. There are also videos of him with Xavier Naidoo and the singer of the extreme right-wing hooligan band Category C, Hannes Ostendorf. Westfal finances himself through donations from his community; his breakthrough in the scene was a video of the storming of the Reichstag steps in the summer of 2020. Videos in which he aggressively attacks media professionals are Westfal's specialty; they have titles like "The Destruction of 'World' and WDR" or "Deutschlandfunk bei der Antifa?!" and are viewed particularly frequently.

Unlike Westfal, Sebastian Weber is a member of the AfD. He even sits on the Leipzig district council for the party. That doesn't seem to fill his time. Under the name “Weichreite” he streams demonstrations nationwide. Weber particularly stands out for his confrontations with anti-fascists. He tries to engage anti-fascists in conversation with pseudo-naïve questions like “Doesn’t ‘no human being is illegal’ also apply to rights?” If you get involved with it, it is usually as productive as the proverbial game of chess with a pigeon. Anyone who doesn't want to talk to "Weichreite" is portrayed as an enemy of democracy and a person who refuses to engage in discourse. types of debates, Weber quickly calls for the police. The streamer uses touching or alleged insults to report anti-fascists.

The police are in a dilemma when dealing with right-wing streamers. Basically, it must treat these people like other media professionals and enable their work and not prevent it. However, provocations are not part of normal press work. This has also been recognized in various police authorities; streamers have recently been expelled more frequently after provocations.

However, this is not everyday life. The police often protect right-wing media activists, who also use this to film anti-fascist demonstrations, which can be dangerous for individual demo participants. If demonstrators try to cover the streamers' cameras with umbrellas or flags, the police often stop them in the name of press freedom. In the current "Antifascist Information Sheet", the Berlin "Lautigruppe" explains the problems with right-wing media activists in detail. It does not present a solution, but it does present two means that can be used to annoy the right-wing: Large signs with QR codes that lead to anti-fascist documentaries, texts or podcasts could help shield streamers, and it is also uncomfortable for them to spread such content. Another means is copyrighted music. YouTube recognizes this and switches off live streams and demonetizes them. This forces streamers to either turn off their microphones or hide the music using software.

This is certainly not the ultimate wisdom when dealing with right-wing streamers. But at least these are opportunities to disrupt their aggressive propaganda a little.

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