Schanzer Journal

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The Schanzer Journal was a local newspaper in Ingolstadt , which appeared monthly to bi-monthly from 1978 to 1988.

The Schanzer Journal, also known as “SJ” or the “Schanzer” for short, saw itself as an “alternative” local newspaper “for and from Ingolstadt”. The main concern of the newspaper makers was to create a counter-public that found no or insufficient mouthpiece in Ingolstadt's only daily press, the “Donau Kurier”.

Journalism that dares to go beyond the prevailing opinion

Counter-public was understood as a comprehensive concept for topics, opinions, views and interests that were not heard by the ruling public in Ingolstadt, that is, by the political opinion leadership of the city. This was mainly characterized by the decades of CSU domination in the city parliament and the growing cultural self-image as the Autostadt. Ingolstadt is on the one hand dependent on Audi , their largest employer, on the other hand it is also happy to have this employer who helped the city to its clearly perceptible prosperity. Numerous Audi employees are proud to be “Audians”. In this opinion leadership at that time, for example, there was no alternative to the use of nuclear energy, armament against the threat from the East, or car-friendly urban planning.

The creation of a counter-public was also the goal of numerous newspaper initiatives in other cities at that time, which is why they often called themselves instead of newspapers . The protagonists of “alternative” journalism created magazines such as the Münchner Blatt , the zitty in Berlin, the Plärrer in Nuremberg or the Falter in Vienna. The papers have been discontinued in the meantime or have long ceased to be the journalism of the time. The most successful implementation of this newspaper concept, however, took place at the federal level with the establishment of the taz .

As a rule, the SJ's newspaper makers were not trained journalists. With the desire to write and the vision that the creation of a counter-public is achievable, they developed their journalistic, political and business talents. The articles were often the result of long and heated discussions. Even the typesetter intervened while the newspaper was being produced and simply wrote her comments between the sentences.

The topics

The supraregional issues such as the introduction of the 35-hour week, the reprocessing plant for radioactive waste (WAA) in Wackersdorf ("Drawn by WAAsinn"), the arms policy, the 1983 and 1987 census , unemployment or immigration and asylum policy were never lacking on the local. Permanent topics were the planned construction of Ingolstadt's “Third Danube Bridge” and the discussion of Ingolstadt's transport policy and urban planning (“car craze” or “nightmare car”). They did not shy away from taking up bold or bizarre topics: “Free public transport”, “Foreign beer customs: Bavaria and Indians in comparison” or “Men - revealed by a woman”, a report about the exhibition of the same name on the title page helped the January 1985 issue to an almost scandalous nude photo (male nature) for the time. The Schanzer Journal also had no shortage of well-known interview partners such as the writer and reporter Günter Wallraff . In issue 4/1980 there is an interview with the then 31-year-old CSU MP Horst Seehofer .

  • Title page from the early days of the newspaper (Schanzer Journal, issue 11/1979)

  • Later, the Schanzer Journal achieved a more professional outfit (Schanzer Journal, issue 2/1987)

  • Schanzer Journal, issue 1/1985 (original title page retouched by the author)

  • Edition of the Schanzer Journal (4/1984)

When it came to the National Socialist past or the journalistic “machinations” of the then publisher of the Donau Kurier , Wilhelm Reissmüller , the SJ newspaper makers were in top form. The attacked took legal action against reports about his "alleged NSDAP membership" or " black lists ". In the end, neither side could really win the legal battles. The financial damage to the corridor was limited for the editors of the SJ. But she had certainly captured the hearts of many Ingolstadt residents with their campaign against Reismüller, while others saw in it only disrespect for a renowned Ingolstadt native. Reissmüller needed the Schanzer Journal and he needed the Schanzer Journal.

Journalism and engagement in art, culture and politics

Art and culture were also important to the journalists from Schanz. The legend researcher Emmi Böck , who in the opinion of the journalists was not properly appreciated in the local daily press, almost had a regular place in the reporting. Young and unknown artists from Ingolstadt and the surrounding area often had their first appearance in the SJ. Poetry could not be missing either, although a large part of it came from the pen of the newspaper makers themselves. The newspaper publisher was later expanded to include a book publisher.

The editors of the Schanzer Journal didn't just limit themselves to writing. In their opinion, the counter-public also demanded active participation in politics and citizens' initiatives, as well as “civil disobedience” . For example, the Schanzer Journal initiated protests against the census at the local level in 1983 and 1987. It also accompanied the emergence and development of the Greens as a political force in Ingolstadt.

When the counter-public lost its mouthpiece

The end of the Schanzer Journal came as a surprise and sudden for many Ingolstadt residents.

Title of the last edition of the Schanzer Journal

The newspaper had become an integral part of the local newspaper landscape. She lived mainly from the self-exploitation of the newspaper makers, from their almost unpaid commitment to a different type of journalism. The income usually only covered production costs. This concept, which worked for ten years, lost its acceptance among the protagonists of the Schanzer Journal: “In the search for advertisers and a broader group of readers who could avert financial ruin alone, we moved further and further away from our formerly purely political claim. [...] Amazingly, funded the SJ even themselves. But a reasonable Editor's pay was still in the stars. " . An economic basis that would secure a livelihood for newspaper makers seemed unattainable. That didn't change much when a wine shop and copy shop were added to the editorial team.

In order to achieve a sustainable economic basis, many of the later so-called " scene papers " not only changed their appearance, but also reoriented themselves in terms of content. From then on a journalism was cultivated in which subscribers and especially advertisers no longer got the feeling that they were supporting a “radical organization”. In Ingolstadt in the 1970s and 1980s, this feeling came about very quickly. The Schanzer journalists did not want to take this path, did not want to follow the zeitgeist that would deprive them of their journalistic identity. It was and is important to create a counter-public in Ingolstadt. It just didn't pay off for the newspaper makers. They resigned with their heads held high, even if this meant that they could no longer save most of their political claims and their journalistic identity. And there were no longer any idealists who wanted to be their journalistic successor.

Journalistic professionalism beyond professional journalism

The Schanzer Journal shaped a journalism in Ingolstadt that was unique of its kind and was no longer achieved. The SJ managed to live up to its claim and create a counter-public. The newspaper's political and journalistic concept was successful, but its business management concept could not be viable. Both were in competition with each other, one could not be achieved by giving up the other, at least not in Ingolstadt. The ten-year history of the Schanzer Journal shows that there are topics that are not adequately recognized by the established media, at both local and national levels. That was and is not news. Impressive reports, published by WikiLeaks, for example, show that comprehensive information for the public requires a journalistic commitment that is not sufficiently available in the established media. This kind of journalism only makes it difficult for a newspaper or a medium in general to function as an advertising medium or to serve the emotional world of a readership that would be broad enough to contribute to its livelihood.

Note

" Schanzer " is a traditional nickname for the residents of Ingolstadt, which came from the time when the city was mainly famous for its fortifications.

Web links

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Schanzer Journal, June 1986
  2. ↑ Schanzer Journal, 3/1979
  3. ↑ Schanzer Journal, April 1987
  4. ↑ Schanzer Journal, August 1978
  5. ↑ Schanzer Journal, 1/1979
  6. ↑ Schanzer Journal, 2/1980
  7. ↑ Schanzer Journal, 3/1980
  8. ↑ Schanzer Journal, October 1987
  9. ↑ Schanzer Journal, January 1985
  10. ↑ Schanzer Journal, February 1986
  11. ↑ Schanzer Journal, 4/1980
  12. ↑ Schanzer Journal 4 (5), No. 4/82
  13. ↑ Schanzer Journal 4 (7), p. 10, June 1984, pp. 5-7
  14. ↑ Schanzer Journal 6 (8), September 1985, p. 8
  15. ↑ Schanzer Journal 6 (9), October 1986, p. 14
  16. ↑ Schanzer Journal, No. 3, April 1988, p. 5