The renowned Otto Brenner Prize goes to FR correspondent Pitt von Bebenburg.
What started your research? ”A short, factual question – which Pitt von Bebenburg can only answer in detail and emotionally at the award of the Otto Brenner Prize for Critical Journalism in Berlin. The “disgusting threatening letters” to mostly prominent women, signed with NSU 2.0, are the moving topic of the state parliament correspondent of the Frankfurter Rundschau.
The personal data of the recipients necessary for the right-wing extremist, racist letters had been queried on the computers of the police.
Otto Brenner Prize for FR correspondent: publications increase pressure
Initially, says von Bebenburg, “next to nothing” happened during the investigation. The publications increased the pressure and brought in a special investigator. “The fact that a suspect was caught and charged this year is certainly part of this improved investigation.” The man is said to have pretended to be a police officer when he called the police – and thus received the requested data.
In Hessen there are up to 45,000 queries in police systems every day – many of them could be abusive, also for private reasons. That must be turned off, demands Pitt von Bebenburg. “And politics has only been concerned with that since the research got underway.” Right-wing, racist chats, in which hundreds of Hessian police officers were involved, also came to the fore in this way.
Otto Brenner Prize for a series of articles about NSU 2.0 since 2020
The Otto Brenner Foundation awarded von Bebenburg the first prize for critical journalism for his series of articles, which had been published in the Frankfurter Rundschau since July 2020.
Last year, Gregor Haschnik, an FR editor, received the prestigious award. He had been intensively investigating the death of a young boy in a sect-like group in Hanau since 2014.
The case was reopened by the judiciary, also because of Hashnik’s involvement. He summarized his research in FR7 under the title “How did Jan H. die?” Due to the pandemic, the award was only now presented.
Otto Brenner Prize: In addition to Pitt von Bebenburg, Juliane Löffler also received an award
This also applies to Juliane Löffler from Ippen-Investigativ. Her work with Margherita Bettoni on the subject of “Sexual harassment and sexual violence in the medical field”, supported by a grant from the foundation, was published in March in FR. Löffler recently researched the former “Bild” editor-in-chief Julian Reichelt.
The jury also found the NDR documentary “Who owns the vaccine?”, Which Christian Baars, Oda Lambrecht and Simone Horst shot with Lutz Ackermann for “Panorama – die Reporter”, worthy of a prize. The taz journalists Kersten Augustin and Sebastian Erb, who worked on the subject of right-wing extremists in the Bundestag police, were also honored. The editorial team of “Monitor” with its head Georg Restle received a special award “for the most meticulous research, independence, for strong opinions and for inflexibility”. Laudator Heribert Prantl encouraged that journalism also means resistance. The newcomer award goes to Selina Bettendorf, who examined sexual harassment in everyday life in the “Tagesspiegel”.
IG Metall’s Otto Brenner Foundation promotes science and research. She commemorates the former chairman of the union. (Michael Bayer)
