This is alist of German far-right periodicals (post-1945). In post-World War II Germany, after the defeat of theNazis andNazi Germany, the far-right was outlawed by the Allied occupation forces, preventing political continuity of theNazi Party in a new, post-war form. InWest Germany, reformed far-right parties were able to reestablish a foot hold in thenational parliament in the early years of the new Federal Republic, courtesy in part to the post-war issues the new country faced. With the recovery of the German economy, theWirtschaftswunder, the far-right declined in appeal. The far-right, from the 1960s, was characterised by fragmentation and infighting. Following theGerman reunification, in the early 1990s, the far-right has regained strength and become more of a threat to the democratic Germany again.[1][2]
InEast Germany, a communist country, the far-right was declared extinct by the government despite the fact that a quarter of all members of the ruling communist party, in 1954, had formerly been members of the Nazi Party. Despite the official line, racism and far-right ideology existed and, towards the end of the country's existence in the late 1980s, increased. It was however swept under the carpet by the ruling authorities as ordinary violence and hooliganism rather than being allowed to be seen as a resurface of far-right ideology.[3]
The GermanFederal Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies thefar-right (German:Rechtsextremismus) as a movement against the equality of all people as guaranteed by the German constitution, and as enemies of the democratic nature of the German state. Their aim is to establish an authoritarian state, modelled on theFührerprinzip. The far-right places undue value on race and ethnicity which results in xenophobia and racism.Antisemitism is a core principal of their ideology.[4] Far-right publications generally glorify Germany's Nazi past and the armed forces of the era, theWehrmacht andWaffen-SS, offering historically revisionist publications and attempting to promote the myth of the "Clean Wehrmacht" and "Clean Waffen-SS". Far-right publisher are however careful to not out-rightlydeny or trivialisethe Holocaust, this being a criminal offence in Germany, as many have been prosecuted for such offences in the past.[5]
The German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, as of 2017, classifies three political parties as far-right, theNational Democratic Party of Germany (NPD),Die Rechte andDer III. Weg, with a combined membership of 6,050.[6]
Historically, a small number of long-standing far-right newspapers and magazines have been published since the early 1950s, like theNational Zeitung andNation Europa, while a larger number of publications have only existed for a short duration.[7] The pulp magazineDer Landser, which existed for almost 60 years, glorified the German armed forces and omit the war crimes committed by Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS, without providing any historical context and was eventually terminated after a complaint by theSimon Wiesenthal Center.[8]
The far-right print media in Germany is predominantly organised in theGesellschaft für freie Publizistik [de], GfP, the largest far-right association of publishers, authors and book sellers, which was formed by former SS officers and Nazi officials in 1960.[9] The number of far-right publishers in Germany independent of political parties has declined from 45 in 2001 to 30 in 2016.[5]
Major far-right newspapers and magazines:[9]
| Name | Location | Est | Dis | Circulation | Published | Publisher | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Der Freiwillige | Reinsfeld | 1956 | 2014 | 5,000 (2006) | Two monthly | Munin Verlag [de] | Central organ of theHIAG, a veterans organisation of theWaffen-SS, classified as revisionist and idolising the Waffen-SSMerged intoDMZ Zeitgeschichte in 2014, which is published byDietmar Munier [de] | [10][11] |
| Deutsche Geschichte | Gilching | 1990 | Active | 10,000 (2016) | Two monthly | Verlagsgesellschaft Berg mbH | Produced by one of the largest independent far-right publishers in Germany, the periodical contains historical revisionist articles on military history | [9] |
| Deutsche Militärzeitschrift Zeitgeschichte | Selent | 2012 | Active | Two monthly | Verlagsgruppe Lesen & Schenken | An offshoot of theDeutsche Militärzeitschrift [de], which caters for a more moderate readership, theDeutsche Militärzeitschrift Zeitgeschichte caters for the far-right, glorifying theWaffen-SSThe publication absorbed the Waffen-SS veterans publicationDer Freiwillige in 2014 | [9] | |
| Deutsche Stimme [de] | Riesa | 1976 | Active | 21,000 (2007) | Monthly | Deutsche-Stimme-Verlag | Official party organ of the far-rightNational Democratic Party of Germany, classified as xenophobic, nationalistic and Antisemitic | [7] |
| National Zeitung | Munich | 1951 | Active | 38,000 (2007) | Weekly | DSZ Druckschriften- und Zeitungs-Verlag GmbH | Originally published asDeutsche Soldaten-Zeitung, renamedDeutsche National-Zeitung und Soldaten-Zeitung in 1961 andDeutsche National-Zeitung in 1963. Merged in 1999 withDeutscher Anzeiger to becomeNational Zeitung. TheBavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies theNational Zeitung as propagating a xenophobic, nationalist and revisionist world viewFunctioned as the semi-official party organ of theGerman People's Union, the DVU, with both controlled byGerhard Frey | [7][12] |
| Nation Europa | Coburg | 1951 | 2009 | 18,000 (2007) | Monthly | Nation Europa Verlags GmbH | Purchased in 2009 byDietmar Munier [de] and replaced withZuerst!In its final years closely associated with the far-rightNational Democratic Party of Germany, categorised by theFederal Office for the Protection of the Constitution as "the most significant organ of right-wing extremist theory and strategy" | [7][13] |
| Junge Freiheit | Berlin | 1986 | Active | 28,000 (2016) | Weekly | Junge Freiheit Verlag GmbH & Co. KG | Classified as right wing, bordering far-right, part of theNeue Rechte | [7] |
| Zuerst! | Berlin | 2010 | Active | Monthly | Verlagsgruppe Lesen & Schenken | Successor toNation Europa, self-declared right-wing with many far-right contributors and advertisers, published byDietmar Munier [de] | [13] |