The Greens and Left parties in the Bundestag are urging Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer to explain the business of the media company he founded and eliminate possible conflicts of interest. “Any lack of clarity regarding possible mixing of interests would undermine the office’s credibility and undermine public trust,” said Green Party politician Sven Lehmann, chairman of the Bundestag’s culture committee.
The background is a report from the portal “Apollo News”, among others, which stated that Weimer Media Group supposedly offered the company exclusive access to federal ministers in exchange for money at Ludwig Erhard’s annual summit at Lake Tegernsee and advertised “influence on political decision makers”. Therefore, the Bavarian state government is examining whether the event should continue to receive state support or not.
Weimer is also responsible for media policy. According to a company spokesperson, he owns a 50 percent stake in Weimer Media Group, but does not exercise any voting rights.
Lehmann demanded that the Minister of State should establish full transparency “about possible ties between Weimer Media Group and government agencies.” Weimer should also explain how conflicts of interest can be set aside in media policymaking.
Left-wing media policy spokesman David Schliesing accused Weimer of “directly empowering his office through his media companies.” This kind of behavior is poison for democracy. “All allegations must now be fully clarified and appropriate consequences taken,” the left-wing politician said.
