The concept of an interview was created. - The Schumi family collects 200,000 euros.
A tabloid attempted to fool its audience with a fake interview of Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher (55). As reported by "Übermedien," the publication "Die Aktuelle" paid €200,000 to Schumacher's family as a settlement, following the deceptive story.
The Press Council condemned the advertisement of this fabricated interview once it was published, stating: "This flagrant misleading of the readership could potentially harm the credibility of the press."
Schumacher's family filed a lawsuit against the publisher in retaliation to the phoney article. Funke requested an apology and published a retraction: "This tasteless and deceptive piece should never have seen the light of day. It doesn't come close to the journalistic standards that we, along with our readers, hold Funke to."
The editor-in-chief behind the unauthorized interview, Anne Hoffmann, was fired, but she refused to accept her dismissal. Seeking justice, she took her case to the Munich Labor Court. The court ruled the extraordinary termination was disproportionate. Funke has decided to fight this ruling.
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Source: symclub.org