3 ms·

Something i haven't seen mentioned much is that the tv station this show is on, is a public broadcasting station paid for with taxes via the german government.

Something i haven't seen mentioned much is that the tv station this show is on, is a public broadcasting station paid for with taxes via the german government. While it turns out there are laws in place that ensure the government cannot influence program, it is fairly easy to understand how Erdogan could take this combination of being mocked by a state tv station wrongly, and get the impression that contacting the ambassador is the right step.

mschuster91 11y ago
> is a public broadcasting station paid for with taxes via the german government Not exactly. Germans have to pay the Rundfunkabgabe which directly funds the TV stations, it's not a position in the government's bookkeeping.
elcapitan 11y ago
> While it turns out there are laws in place that ensure the government cannot influence program Well those tv stations are controlled by boards on which members of the ruling political parties are, so the influence thing is kind if ridiculous, but that's the official version, yes.
johannes1234321 11y ago
No, the "Rundfunkbeitrag" is no tax and Government isn't involved in collecting this. This is a bit of a juristic nitpicking but they are to some degree independent from government in financing, while the payment is mandatory. Politicians are however members of the supervisory councils (along with church representatives, worker union members and so on)
lispm 11y ago
I don't think Erdogan cares whether journalists are working for private companies, public stations or government media. Either they are for him or against him. If they are against him, he is going after them - regardless of who employs them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_freedom_in_Turkey https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_freedom_in_Turkey
kuschku 11y ago
There is quite a difference: The station isn’t paid for by taxes from the government, but the station has the right to collect its own taxes, ensuring it can act independently.
- taejo 11y ago
  Moreover, this right is established by a treaty between the German states, rather than by a law of the federal government.
  - elcapitan 11y ago
    So there's basically a media bureaucracy that can decide how much money it wants to earn, without asking any customers. Awesome!
    - taejo 11y ago
      That may be true, but it's irrelevant to my point, which was that the Rundfunkbeitrag is a matter of state (Land) law, and thus even further away from the hands of the federal foreign ministry.
    - kuschku 11y ago
      But they can not decide their own wages, can not carry profits from one year into the other, and can not hoard excess money.
    - hussong 11y ago
      Side note: as someone who pays that fee, I would never think of myself as a 'customer' of public broadcasting, since it's a public service -- just like I wouldn't think of myself as a 'customer' of hospitals, schools, communal waste disposal, the fire department or law enforcement.

mschuster91 11y ago

> is a public broadcasting station paid for with taxes via the german government Not exactly. Germans have to pay the Rundfunkabgabe which directly funds the TV stations, it's not a position in the government's bookkeeping.

elcapitan 11y ago

> While it turns out there are laws in place that ensure the government cannot influence program Well those tv stations are controlled by boards on which members of the ruling political parties are, so the influence thing is kind if ridiculous, but that's the official version, yes.

johannes1234321 11y ago

No, the "Rundfunkbeitrag" is no tax and Government isn't involved in collecting this. This is a bit of a juristic nitpicking but they are to some degree independent from government in financing, while the payment is mandatory. Politicians are however members of the supervisory councils (along with church representatives, worker union members and so on)

lispm 11y ago

I don't think Erdogan cares whether journalists are working for private companies, public stations or government media. Either they are for him or against him. If they are against him, he is going after them - regardless of who employs them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_freedom_in_Turkey https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_freedom_in_Turkey

kuschku 11y ago

There is quite a difference: The station isn’t paid for by taxes from the government, but the station has the right to collect its own taxes, ensuring it can act independently.

taejo 11y ago
Moreover, this right is established by a treaty between the German states, rather than by a law of the federal government.
- elcapitan 11y ago
  So there's basically a media bureaucracy that can decide how much money it wants to earn, without asking any customers. Awesome!
  - taejo 11y ago
    That may be true, but it's irrelevant to my point, which was that the Rundfunkbeitrag is a matter of state (Land) law, and thus even further away from the hands of the federal foreign ministry.
  - kuschku 11y ago
    But they can not decide their own wages, can not carry profits from one year into the other, and can not hoard excess money.
  - hussong 11y ago
    Side note: as someone who pays that fee, I would never think of myself as a 'customer' of public broadcasting, since it's a public service -- just like I wouldn't think of myself as a 'customer' of hospitals, schools, communal waste disposal, the fire department or law enforcement.