How to Train as an Interviewer to Disenchant AfD Representatives
1. Basic Attitude: Clearly Define the Journalistic Role
The most important thing first: An interview is not an argument and not a debate. The interviewer is not the opponent, but the representative of the audience. This role must be trained – because AfD representatives systematically try to push journalists into the role of a fellow debater (Strategy 8: Counter-questions).
Training:
- Role-plays in which the interviewer deliberately does NOT respond to counter-questions
- Exercise: “I ask the questions, you answer” – say this sentence calmly and firmly
- Self-observation: When do I become a debater? When do I defend myself instead of asking follow-up questions?
2. Tools: Training the Disenchantment Strategies
2.1 Staying on Topic (Strategy 1)
This is the most important skill. AfD representatives like to jump from topic to topic – from unemployment to security, from security to migration, from migration to pensions. Whoever does not pay attention loses the thread.
Training:
- Prepare the interview with a clear chain of questions: One question → answer → follow-up → answer → follow-up. Do not let go.
- Exercise: “The Five Whys” – with every evasive answer, ask again until a concrete answer comes.
- Example: An AfD representative is asked about the unemployment rate in 1995. He evades. Better would be: “You did not answer my question. What was good about 20 percent unemployment?”
2.2 Setting Facts Against Emotions (Strategy 2)
Numbers are the sharpest sword against “lived reality” rhetoric. But: The emotional level must be taken seriously, otherwise the interviewer appears cold and arrogant.
Training:
- Fact-check before every interview: Which numbers are relevant? Where do they contradict the claim?
- Exercise: Formulate facts in such a way that they do not sound preachy: “You say people feel less safe. The number of recorded crimes has almost halved since 1995. How do you explain this contradiction?”
- Important: Do not fall into an Excel spreadsheet yourself. The number is the entry point, not the end.
2.3 Marking Evasion (Strategy 3)
This is the simplest and most effective technique. AfD representatives constantly evade. When the interviewer names this, it becomes visible to the audience.
Training:
- Practice standard formulations:
- “You did not answer my question.”
- “I’ll ask again: [repeat question].”
- “That was a counter-question. I ask the questions.”
- “You are evading. Why?”
- Exercise: Analyze interview recordings. Where was evasion? How could it have been marked?
- Important: Stay calm and objective. Not accusatory, but stating.
2.4 Not Getting Entangled in Discussions (Strategy 4)
AfD representatives want to discuss, not answer. They want the journalist as an opponent in order to stage themselves as victims. Whoever lets themselves get entangled plays into their hands.
Training:
- Role-play: The interview partner asks counter-questions. The interviewer does NOT respond to them, but repeats his question.
- Exercise: “Thank you for the counter-question. I ask the questions. My question was: [repetition].”
- Self-control: Do I notice when I start to argue? If yes: Stop. Back to the question.
2.5 Conducting Fundamental Debates (Strategy 5)
Do not get lost in details, but ask fundamental questions. With an AfD representative, that would be: “You want the population level of 1990. How is that supposed to work democratically?” or “You want to replace 200,000 workers through births. How is that supposed to work in 10 years?”
Training:
- Prepare a catalog of questions: What are the fundamental contradictions in the program?
- Exercise: Formulate the three most important fundamental questions and keep returning to them in the interview.
- Example: “You say you want less migration. At the same time, 200,000 workers are missing. How does that fit together?”
2.6 Making an Ideological Classification (Strategy 6)
Terms such as “remigration,” “globalist elites,” “German culture” are not neutral wordings, but a worldview. Whoever treats them merely as a language style normalizes them.
Training:
- Background knowledge: What does “remigration” really mean? What is the “New Right”? What is the “Great Replacement”?
- Exercise: Decode terms. “You say remigration. That means people with a migration background should leave the country. Is that correct?”
- Important: Do not interpret, but ask: “What exactly do you mean by that?”
2.7 More Resources for AfD Interviews (Strategy 7)
AfD interviews are not normal interviews. They require more preparation, more time, more staff.
Training:
- Preparation team: Someone does the fact-check, someone analyzes previous interviews, someone prepares questions.
- Time: At least twice as much preparation time as for other interviews.
- Follow-up: Evaluate the interview. What worked? What did not?
2.8 Pointing Out Historical Parallels (Strategy 8)
Klemperer’s “LTI” (Lingua Tertii Imperii) is a good reference. He analyzed how Nazi language worked: emotionalization, repetition, enemy images, victim myth.
Training:
- Reading: Victor Klemperer, LTI. Notebook of a Philologist.
- Exercise: Analyze current AfD rhetoric with Klemperer’s categories.
- In the interview: Do not draw direct Nazi comparisons (that is a no-go), but recognize the mechanisms and counter them.
2.9 Media Reflection (Strategy 9)
Media have contributed to normalization through the attention economy and “fascination with evil.” This must be reflected upon.
Training:
- Self-critical question: Why are we interviewing this person? Because they are relevant? Or because they bring ratings?
- Exercise: Discussion in the team: How can we report without normalizing?
- Important: Do not broadcast every provocation. Do not leave every lie uncommented.
2.10 Values Level Instead of Details (Strategy 10)
With topics such as Ukraine, defense, asylum law, it is not about numbers, but about values. These values must be conveyed.
Training:
- Formulate questions that address values: “You say we should not send money to Ukraine. At the same time you say Germany should be safe. How does that fit together?”
- Exercise: Identify value conflicts in the AfD program and address them in the interview.
- Important: Do not moralize, but ask: “What does that mean for the people in Ukraine?”
3. Concrete Exercises for Everyday Use
3.1 Interview Analysis
Take an interview with an AfD representative and analyze:
- Where does he evade?
- Where does he contradict himself?
- Where does he delegitimize statistics?
- Where does he ask counter-questions?
- Where should the interviewer have asked follow-up questions?
3.2 Role-Play
Simulate the interview with a colleague who plays the AfD representative.
- The “AfD representative” applies all strategies: level switching, counter-questions, “lived reality,” self-trivialization.
- The interviewer practices: staying on topic, marking evasion, not getting entangled.
- Afterwards: Feedback. What worked? What did not?
3.3 Creating a Question Catalog
Create a question catalog for every AfD interview with:
- 3 fundamental questions
- 5 factual questions
- 5 follow-up questions for evasion
- 3 value questions
3.4 Fact-Check Training
Practice finding and formulating facts quickly.
- Where do I find statistics? (Destatis, BKA, IHK, Leibniz Institute)
- How do I formulate them briefly and understandably?
- How do I counter “That is theoretical”?
3.5 Self-Reflection
After every interview:
- Did I maintain my role as a journalist?
- Did I let myself get entangled?
- Did I mark evasion?
- Did I stay on topic?
- What will I do better next time?
4. The Most Important Sentences for the Toolbox
| Situation | Sentence |
|---|---|
| Evasion | “You did not answer my question.” |
| Counter-question | “I ask the questions. My question was: …” |
| Level switching | “That is a different topic. Back to my question.” |
| “Lived reality” | “You are talking about feelings. The numbers say something different. How do you explain that?” |
| Statistic delegitimization | “That is a statistic from the Federal Criminal Police Office. Why should it be wrong?” |
| Contradiction | “You just said X. Earlier you said Y. Which is it now?” |
| Victim staging | “You are here to answer questions. That is not a victim role, that is an interview.” |
| Provocation | “That is a strong claim. Can you substantiate it?” |
5. Conclusion: Disenchantment Is Craftsmanship
Disenchantment is not a question of courage or morality, but of craftsmanship. AfD representatives use predictable strategies. Whoever knows these strategies can counter them.
The three most important skills:
- Stay on topic – do not let yourself be distracted.
- Mark evasion – make it visible when no answer comes.
- Know the facts – numbers, data, contradictions.
The most important principle: Do not discuss, but ask. Do not moralize, but ask follow-up questions. Do not get entangled, but maintain the role.
And: Practice makes perfect. No interviewer is born as a disenchanter. But anyone can learn it – with preparation, role-play, and self-reflection.
6. All Strategies at a Glance
Communication Strategies of AfD Representatives
- Feelgood right-wing populism: Packaging a radical agenda in good mood, enthusiasm, and a positive vision.
- Approachability and mateyness: Actively approaching people, asking questions, terms of endearment, bro-like/matey style.
- “Lived reality” as a combat term: Placing subjective/emotional perception above objective facts; delegitimizing statistics as out of touch with reality.
- Self-trivialization (according to Kubitschek): Reducing the emotional barrier to the ordinary citizen; whitewashing the völkisch program.
- Staging as a reconciler/bridge-builder: Approaching counter-demonstrators, listening to (letting them present) their perspective, filming oneself doing so; portraying others as dividers.
- Movement aesthetics: Professional PR teams, warm/bright visual language, Simson parades, staging of strength, departure, community, East German identity.
- Level switching: Generalizing on differentiated questions, calling for differentiation on generalized questions.
- Asking counter-questions: Not answering questions, but asking counter-questions in order to delegitimize journalists as questioners.
- Positive identification surface: Not only serving enemy images (“those up there”), but also positive feelings and sympathy.
- Emotional narratives: “Good old intact world,” “Germany but normal,” “We are taking our country back.”
Strategies for Disenchantment
- Stay on topic: Do not jump from topic to topic, but persistently ask follow-up questions.
- Set facts against emotions: Numbers and statistics as a counterpole to subjective perception, but take the emotional level seriously and acknowledge it.
- Mark evasion: Clearly name it when someone does not answer questions or asks counter-questions.
- Do not get entangled in discussions: Journalists should maintain their role and not become fellow debaters.
- Conduct fundamental debates: Do not get lost in Excel spreadsheet details, but ask fundamental questions (EU, NATO, asylum law – yes or no?).
- Make an ideological classification: Decode terms such as “globalist elites,” “German culture,” “passport Germans” as a worldview, not treat them as mere wordings.
- More resources for AfD interviews: AfD is not a normal party; interviews require more preparation, time, and staff.
- Point out historical parallels: Use Klemperer’s analysis of Nazi language as a reference for current rhetoric.
- Media reflection: Ask whether media have contributed to normalization through the attention economy and “fascination with evil.”
- Values level instead of details: With topics such as Ukraine/defense, convey fundamental values and complexity, not just numbers.