Take Down the Far-right Propaganda: The "Compact" Chronicles and Controversies
- **Written by: Phil Göbel
- Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutes
"Magazine 'Compact': Its Reasons for Potential Prohibition" - Exploration of the Controversial Periodical, Compact: Arguments for Its Prohibition
The dust is settling in Leipzig after the Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) delivered a verdict lots of folks are talking about – the controversial "Compact" magazine and its affiliated channels can stay! The hubbub around this matter has been building since last year, and we've got the down-low on the key points and insiders' views.
What on Earth is this "Compact" Magazine?
"Compact" is a monthly publication dating back to 2010. Its chief troll, or should we say, senior editor, is the infamous far-right charmer – Jürgen Elsässer. The magazine's critics accuse it of flamboyant headlines, petty political criticisms, and offensive texts seen as anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic. The media outlet serves as a poster child for the New Right, clans like Pegida, and the AfD.
The "Compact" team claims a population of around 40,000 loyal readers. Back in 2020, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution designated "Compact" as a "right-wing extremist with suspicion." In 2023, the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution labeled the magazine as confirmed right-wing extremist.
Since 2015, "Compact" has overseen the "Compact-TV" YouTube channel, boasting nearly 515,000 subscribers (as of June 2025), where they dish about political gossip and news in a juicy, over-the-top manner.
Why kick "Compact" to the curb?
With the constabulary's labels in mind, ex-Interior Minister Nancy Faeser smacked down Compact-Magazin GmbH, the parent company, Companion Film GmbH, and all related logos and trademarks in June 2024. Here's why she thought it was necessary:
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In a presser, the Ministry of the Interior voiced their reasons, claiming that "Compact" published "anti-Semitic, racist, anti-minority, revisionist, and conspiracy-theory content." The ministry argued that by doing so, the publication was acting contrary to a pluralistic society that promotes human dignity and supports the equal participation of all citizens in political discourse.
The ministry rattled off several examples of why "Compact" was a no-go. For one, there were examples of "volkisch-nationalist thought patterns," which refers to immigrants as "ethnic aliens." Additionally, they cited instances of "resistance and revolution rhetoric" and intentional misrepresentations that could potentially spur its readers to act against the constitutional order.
The ban caused quite a stir – not just in the right-wing corner of the internet. It's not that folks were too psyched about "Compact" per se; they were opposed to the way Faeser planned to execute the ban.
Resistance to the "Compact" Ban
The ban wasn't warmly received by all corners of society. Many observers and legal eagles argued that the problem wasn't banning "Compact" altogether, but rather, how Faeser intended to enforce it.
Banning media in Deutschland isn't a walk in the park and requires high hurdles to clear. Even with openly unconstitutional publications, specific texts or issues are often banned or indexed, but banning an entire medium from publishing can run afoul of Article 5 of the Basic Law, which guards freedom of speech and the press.
Guess what strategy the Interior Ministry took? They used association law – not to ban the magazine directly, but the entities that enable its production.
Experts like the "Association of Free Press Media" and Legal Tribune Online blasted this approach, calling the ban unwarranted. They argued that legislative powers regarding press laws belong to state governments, not the federal government. Many experts saw the process of labeling a medium as an association and then banning it as, well, contrived.
"Compact" took this nonsense to court. Just 24 days after the ban was announced, Compact-Magazin GmbH filed a lawsuit against it with BVerwG. A few weeks later, the court temporarily halted the immediate enforcement of the ban, as the issue of proportionality was under debate. So, the magazine and its affiliated channels carried on as usual while awaiting a final verdict.
Fast forward, and the verdict is out – the Federal Administrative Court has decided that "Compact" can continue publishing. The judges backed their decision by saying that while "Compact" occasionally takes a fighting stance against core constitutional principles, doubts remain as to whether the anti-constitutional passages in the magazine dominate the overall picture, making the ban proportionate.
In short: The Federal Constitutional Court recognizes that there are texts in the magazine that attack the constitution, but there are also plenty that don't. Thus, the magazine is protected by press freedom.
- Compact
- Federal Administrative Court
- Interior Ministry
- Constitutional Protection
- Jürgen Elsässer
- Pegida
- AfD
- The controversy over the "Compact" magazine has sparked discussions about community aid and the role of media in promoting pluralistic societies that support equal participation.
- "Compact" magazine has been identified as a poster child for far-right extremist groups like Pegida and the AfD.
- The magazine's critics claim that "Compact" promotes anti-Semitic, racist, and anti-minority content, while the "Compact" team defends their publication as a form of vocational training for investigative journalism.
- The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution designates "Compact" as a "right-wing extremist with suspicion," and the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution labels the magazine as confirmed right-wing extremist.
- The "Compact-TV" YouTube channel, run by "Compact" magazine, has nearly 515,000 subscribers and focuses on political gossip and news.
- The ban on "Compact" by the Interior Ministry led to debates on policy-and-legislation, particularly focusing on the balance between freedom of speech and the promotion of human dignity.
- Critics argue that banning a medium like "Compact" violates Article 5 of the Basic Law, which guarantees freedom of speech and the press, and that legislative powers regarding press laws belong to state governments.
- "Compact" took the ban to court, citing concerns about the readiness to censor media outlets and the fact that the magazine contains both constitutionally protected and unconstitutional content.
- Sports and entertainment, including football and European leagues like the Premier League, are constantly intertwined with politics and policy-and-legislation, serving as subjects of discussion on social-media platforms.
- The outcome of the "Compact" case will have significant implications for car-accidents, fires, crime-and-justice, and general-news coverage in Germany, as it sets a precedent for how extremist content can coexist with freedom of the press.
