Background circle
A background group (also a background conversation ) is a gathering of selected journalists and politicians . Current political events are discussed in it, although the content is not intended for the public. Background circles serve to inform journalists about facts and to freely discuss political positions. This is intended to sharpen the mutual understanding between politics and the media. Access to background groups is often tightly controlled, and members are subject to strict rules. In some circles, binding participation in all discussions is compulsory or only one specific journalist from each editorial team is allowed to attend the meetings. Despite the official confidentiality of background discussions, politicians like to use them for targeted indiscretion , for example to bring certain facts to the public without discrediting their own name. The background groups are usually led by well-known politicians or parliamentary correspondents. Since the move of the government from Bonn to Berlin and the associated greater competition in political reporting, the interest in background circles on the part of politics is said to have decreased. This is also a consequence of journalistic indiscretions, which lead to the fact that the really confidential exchange usually only takes place in the smallest of circles or one-on-one discussions.
Selection of background circles
- Purple card
- Lake Constance district
- Yellow card
- Living room circle
- Red cloth
- enclave
- cartel
- Dresslerkreis
- Berlin room
- antenna
- Vino Rosso
literature
- Uwe Krüger (2016): Mainstream. Why we don't trust the media anymore. Munich: CH Beck.
- Philip Baugut, Maria-Theresa Grundler (2009): Political (non-) public in the media democracy. An analysis of the relationships between politicians and journalists in Berlin. Baden-Baden: Nomos.