Following the dismissal of Patrick Fischer, SRF is also coming under increasing pressure. Editor-in-chief Tristan Brenn is clearly backing his reporter. At the same time, he warns of the consequences of public attacks on journalists.
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- Patrick Fischer was sacked as national ice hockey coach after his use of a fake Covid certificate became public as a result of SRF research.
- SRF editor-in-chief Tristan Brenn defends the reporting and makes it clear that no confidential conversation was breached and that there was a clear public interest.
- At the same time, Brenn criticizes the fierce attacks on journalist Pascal Schmitz, whose future at SRF is still open.
The case of Patrick Fischer is still causing a stir more than a week after he was sacked. The international ice hockey coach was forced to resign after it was revealed that he traveled to the 2022 Olympic Games in China with a fake Covid certificate. Fischer's public confession was preceded by research by SRF editor Pascal Schmitz, who learned of the offense over lunch during a shoot with Fischer.
In the public debate, criticism was directed not only at Fischer's behavior, but also at SRF. Schmitz had exploited a confidential conversation. The timing of the publication shortly before the home World Cup also adds to the controversy. SRF editor-in-chief Tristan Brenn has now commented on the events for the first time.
In an interview with CH Media, Brenn sees no fault in his own reporting. However, Brenn is particularly concerned about the strong reactions against Schmitz, who has been "publicly pilloried" - a treatment that endangers independent journalism as a whole.
SRF's future with Schmitz still unclear
Brenn clearly backs Schmitz and emphasizes that he worked "professionally". Although his old, problematic social media posts were "indisputable", they had "nothing to do with the research" and did not change the facts. The temporary removal as presenter was decided jointly, also to protect him from further attacks. Schmitz's future has not yet been decided.
In terms of content, Brenn firmly defends the publication of the story. It had not been a confidential conversation; rather, Fischer had revealed the incriminating information on his own initiative during a shoot. SRF therefore had a clear obligation to publish: "As a public medium, SRF cannot know a relevant, proven fact and deliberately conceal it", Brenn is quoted as saying by CH Media.
No SRF campaign against Fischer
In view of Fischer's public role, the threat to his participation in the Olympics and the misleading of the public, the public interest was "undoubtedly given".
Brenn rejects the accusation that SRF ran a campaign against Fischer. Although the story had been widely reported, SRF had exercised restraint afterwards - there had been no calls for his resignation. Brenn is only self-critical of Schmitz's appearance on "10vor10": This was "correct in terms of content and journalism", but made the journalist an unnecessary target.
