Correctiv's Far-Right Investigation Sparks Legal Showdown Over Press Freedom
The downside is equally obvious. If you don't like a ruling in one place, you simply try your luck in another court. Due to this kind of distortion, the practice of forum shopping in competition law was already largely restricted in 2020.
The press, however, continues merrily along. In December 2025, the Hamburg Regional Court ruled that Correctiv's investigative reports on the Potsdam meeting—which included the summary analysis that discussions had touched on the possibility of expelling undesirable German citizens—constituted permissible freedom of expression. Now, the Berlin Regional Court has ruled that the same passage was not opinion but a statement of fact—and therefore not acceptable.
Once again, the entire investigation is being dismissed as flawed. The Neue Zürcher Zeitung declares that "the story by the investigative network about a meeting of far-right extremists and AfD politicians is collapsing under its own weight."Focus columnist Thomas Tuma writes of a "media super-GAU" (a catastrophic meltdown). The FAZ claims that the "core assertion" of the January 2024 article has been "pulled out from under" the reporters.
No Clear Constitutional Violation?
In the media-populist culture wars, facts are famously the first casualty. In Potsdam, Martin Sellner and others did indeed discuss a "plan to merely motivate people with German citizenship to emigrate." This much is undisputed—even the Berlin court acknowledges it, complete with the innocuous little word "merely."
The court also notes that Sellner, in his speech, "mentioned 'tailored' laws designed to exert pressure on 'non-assimilated' citizens to encourage them to leave." But this, apparently, is irrelevant. "Such a demand," the ruling states, "unlike (...) the expulsion of German citizens, does not clearly amount to an obvious legal or constitutional violation."
As long as things remain nicely ambiguous, it's all just talk. Though for a certain circle of colleagues, this seems to create a kind of pressure—one that motivates them to go after Correctiv. From what I can tell, they're all men. Not that I feel any schadenfreude, mind you. More like a profession-specific melancholy. "A man just wants to get his way! And no matter how or with what?" my roommate remarks.
Because the end of the legal road is still far from sight. These are only first-instance rulings. Both decisions have been appealed. If the appeals go in Correctiv's favor, you can bet Focus, the FAZ, and the rest will be sure to report on it—at length, once again.
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