The ARD broadcaster unexpectedly recorded its “Sommerinterview” with Felix Banaszak, Co-leader of the Green Party, on Sunday morning, avoiding disruption from protests. A reporter from the dts news agency confirmed the absence of demonstrators near the filming location opposite the Reichstag building.
The interview, conducted by Deputy Studio Head Matthias Deiß, is scheduled to be broadcast on ARD at 6:00 PM. Prior to the recording, a pro-nuclear energy movement had announced a planned demonstration within view of the television set for 4:00 PM. The ARD Hauptstadtstudio had previously announced the implementation of unspecified “security precautions” in anticipation of the event.
The last ARD “Sommerinterview”, featuring AfD leader Alice Weidel two weeks ago, was significantly hampered by protests. The activist group “Zentrum für Politische Schönheit” disrupted the broadcast – which, as usual, was produced on an open terrace facing the Reichstag – by positioning a sound truck near the set. The resulting noise, including a looped recording of a choir singing “Scheiß AfD” (“This sucks, AfD”), often rendered both Weidel and interviewer Markus Preiß, Head of the ARD Hauptstadtstudio, inaudible. The broadcaster faced criticism for not halting the transmission amidst the disturbance.
