UAt the start of her new political talk, Caren Miosga can't complain about a lack of conversation topics: The Russian war of aggression in Ukraine concerns people, as does the escalation in the Middle East, plus rail strikes and farmers' demonstrations and secret meetings between right-wing extremists and AfD representatives. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets this weekend to demonstrate against the right. That was also the topic of the “Caren Miosga” show. But after sixteen years of “Tagesthemen”, the journalist doesn’t want to give the talk show monkey any sugar, which is why the 54-year-old is organizing her show differently.
Because these rounds are now cast so calculatedly that it is clear in advance who will say what and there is no surprise – not to mention any gain in knowledge – Miosga does not approach her premiere in a confrontational way. She had previously told “Zeit” that she didn’t want a “staged riot,” and that people wanted guidance in times of crisis: “The world is in such a state of unrest, I just want to learn more in a talk show than I have before.”
Three guests at the oval wooden table
However, it is not easy, especially since the question arises as to how “pure debate” differs from “real conversation”. Less arguments and more listening to each other is well intended – which is certainly a lot to ask of politicians in the election campaign. That's probably why there's only one politician in the opening broadcast, CDU leader Friedrich Merz, who had never seen Anne Will in the previous sixteen years. Anne Hähnig, head of the Leipzig correspondent office of “Zeit”, and sociology professor Armin Nassehi from the LMU Munich are invited. Not five or six guests gather around the oval wooden table, but only three. Beforehand, however, there is a one-on-one conversation with Merz for a good half hour in order to discursively elicit from him the title question “Merz is realigning the CDU – will Germany's future be conservative?” instead of sending him straight into hand-to-hand combat.
But the debut of the Sauerlander on Sunday evening after the “crime scene” was rather slow. Miosga doesn't manage to get answers from the politician that one hasn't heard before in one form or another. The deep black table lamp from the Sauerland factory that she suddenly places on the table also has no effect. 61 percent of Germans think Merz is unsuitable as a candidate for chancellor, says Miosga, but he laughs it off. No, the K question has not yet been decided, it will be figured out with Markus Söder in autumn 2024, and yes, the demos against the AfD are encouraging, a sign of vibrant democracy, the firewall also exists, but at the local political level you have to be pragmatic be.
The row with Angela Merkel
What conservative means to him? The answer follows from the rhetorical box: “Preserve what is good, be open to the new, explain progress”. He also won't get involved in a long-distance duel with Angela Merkel. The noise from back then, forgotten. The fact that she left the Adenauer Foundation and rejected the honorary chairmanship of the party – she is just very busy and is writing a book. He wants to celebrate her 70th birthday in the Adenauerhaus in July. She hasn't agreed yet, is the only tip he allows himself.
#talk #show #Caren #Miosga #Friedrich #Merz
