Die Aktuelle sparked huge controversy when it published a front-page article claiming to have a “first interview” with Schumacher after his 2013 skiing accident.
Internally, and without any permission from the family, the magazine published quotes generated with artificial intelligence.
The upheaval caused by the interview prompted the editors to remove the magazine’s editor, Anne Hoffmann, from her position and subsequently issue an apology.
“This tasteless and misleading article should never have appeared,” Funke CEO Bianca Pohlmann wrote in a statement. “It in no way meets the journalistic standards that we and our readers expect from a publishing house like Funke.”
“Following the publication of this article, immediate personal consequences will be drawn.” The editor of Die Aktuelle, Anne Hoffmann, who has had journalistic responsibility for the newspaper since 2009, will be relieved of her duties as of today.”
However, the Schumacher family took legal action over the matter, which was argued in the German courts.
Sources have confirmed that the editors of Die Aktuelle have reached an agreement at the Munich labor court to secure compensation for the interview. It is believed that Schumacher’s family will receive 200,000 euros.
Jean Todt and Corinna Schumacher at the Michael Schumacher Celebration
Photo by: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images
The Schumacher family has maintained strict confidentiality about the seven-time world champion’s condition and his recovery after the skiing accident that left him with a serious brain injury.
The pilot is continuing to recover from the accident at his home in Switzerland and has not been seen in public since, with only close friends of the family maintaining contact.
The only glimpse into the Schumachers’ lives was given by the Netflix documentary “Schumacher”, edited by the family and published in 2021, with interviews with his wife Corinna and son Mick.
In the documentary, Corinna said: “We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael feel better, to make sure he’s comfortable and to just make him feel like our family, our bond.”
“We’re trying to continue being a family, the way Michael liked and still likes it. And we’re moving on with our lives.”
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