Latest posts by Rachel Horst
The German Voices on the Greek Crisis You Aren't Hearing
Within German online communities anti-austerity voices -- that align themselves with the Greek people -- are loud and clear.
Germany's Migration Commissioner Throws Her Support Behind Migrant Voting Rights in Municipal Elections
In Germany, however, foreigners from the EU can take part in municipal elections; only non-EU citizens are excluded.
#Lobbytweet, a Push for More Transparency in Germany's Politics
The initiative #Lobbytweet wants to bring more transparency into politics. With the hashtag #Lobbytweet, politicians can make their meetings with lobbyists public.
Refugees on Hunger Strike in Germany against Politics of Deterrence
On October 24, twenty-five asylum-seekers went on hunger strike in front of Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. The protest in the highly symbolic location, which stands for the once violent division of a people by politics, is the latest in a chain reaction that began in February with the suicide of the Iranian Mohammad Rahsepar in a refugee camp in Würzburg.
Germany: Satire Magazine Calls for Complimentary Ph.D.s
After a series of scandals surrounding the academic achievements of German politicians who cheated on their dissertations, the online satire magazine“Der Postillon” is now calling for a complimentary Ph.D. [de] for all politicans: This way, the embarrassing and politically dishonorable rescinding of doctorates can be avoided. The Ministry of Education...
Germany: Criticism of ‘Ich Will Europa’ Campaign
Eleven German foundations started the campaign 'Ich Will Europa' (I Want Europe) to advocate for European integration. However, there has been some strong criticism of the campaign on social media.
Germany: Improve Reporting on Disabled People
It ought to become something understood in the language that disabled people do things not in spite of or because of, but with their disabilities. During the Paralympics in London there have been more and more reports on “against-it-all people” or “supercripples” in the media. leidmedien.de explains how to get...
Germany: Wanted Posters Against Delivery of Tanks to Saudi Arabia
The Center for Political Beauty in Germany is creating a buzz with its "wanted" campaign. Its goal is to convict shareholders of the weapons manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and to put a stop to planned tank deliveries to Saudi Arabia.
Germany: “Rundshow” A New Social TV Format
The Bavarian broadcasting company, Bayerischer Rundfunk, in Germany recently launched a social TV experiment called “Rundshow” [de] (Roundshow). Viewers are actively incorporated into the show through virtual means such as Google Hangout, videos, an app called “Die Macht” (The Power), and Twitter. The concept of blurring the lines between TV...
Germany: Email Monitoring #Bomb(e) Drops
German intelligence agencies examined more than 37 million emails containing particular search terms, for instance "bomb". Reactions in online media ranged between outrage and humor.