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One is noble, the other powerful: the Minister for Defence and the editor in chief of Bild, Kai Diekmann, are brothers in arms “with a shared taste for hair products.” Die Tageszeitung deplores the “buy-yourself-an-opinion” credo that has resulted in an unprecedented symbiosis between Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg and Germany’s largest tabloid. Bild - usually an aggressive commentator - has refrained from any criticism of the recent scandal in the Bundeswehr. Worse still, it has shown itself to be even more partisan in the wake of revelations that Guttenberg plagiarised a large part of his doctoral thesis, to the point of publishing a headline that announced: “87 % of Bild readers say: Yes, we support Guttenberg.” At the same time, an online version of the poll conducted on bild.de, which had a markedly different result – 55% of readers wanted the minister to resign – was quietly swept under the carpet. However, the minister knows how to return a favour: the Bundeswehr, which is planning a recruitment drive to compensate for the suspension of military service, is to launch an advertising drive in April. As it stands, only three press titles stand to benefit from the campaign. The ads will be published by Bild, Bild am Sonntag and bild.de.
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