2024-08-14 14:04:52
For an RTL report, Mareile Höppner confronted a stalker about his behavior in front of the cameras. Now the conversation has disappeared. RTL explains the reasons.
On Tuesday, August 13, Mareile Höppner reported on her experiences with digital violence on RTL. As part of an “Extra” report, she and investigative reporter Angelique Geray collected information about a man who has been sending her unsolicited pictures of his genitals for some time.
Both Höppner and the stalker agree to a virtual meeting. The presenter interviews the stranger about his behavior and motivation. She calls him Tim, he is said to be 25 years old and sits naked in front of the camera during the video conference. Scenes that caused horror among TV audiences – and have since been removed from the show.
Anyone who wants to watch the “Extra” edition again in the media library will notice that the conversation between Mareile Höppner and the stalker has disappeared. The excerpt is also no longer available in an article in which RTL advertised the show beforehand.
Attentive RTL users had already noticed during the TV broadcast of “Extra” that the material on the topic of “digital violence against women” had been edited. On Tuesday afternoon, a teaser in which the stalker’s face could be seen could still be seen on the station’s website – during the broadcast, he was then censored with a bar.
RTL explains on t-online how the interview situation came about: “The man had explicitly asked to be shown openly beforehand. The editors therefore initially decided to show him openly in order to give a face to the people who otherwise hide behind anonymous accounts,” said a station spokeswoman. “During the approval process, the duty of care towards the perpetrator was reassessed and the man was made unrecognizable in the report and the non-pixelated images were blocked on rtl.de, among others,” she explains. After the revision, however, the episode will be put online again.
The report aroused great interest among the RTL audience: “Thank you for this contribution and the honesty in addressing this issue. It was not easy to confront the perpetrator openly, but it was important,” wrote one Instagram user, praising the presentation. “Thank you for this important program,” “I think it’s great that you are tackling this problem,” and “Important topic, exciting contribution,” wrote other viewers.
RTL also continues to stand behind the content of the program: “Digital violence, especially against women, is a growing problem. We want to draw attention to this and give those affected a voice. In the report, we point out the injustice that the victims have little recourse against the perpetrators. More protection is needed on the Internet.”