“Plagiarism hunters” on AfD report: It is merely copied

On Tuesday, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's report, which classifies the AfD as "confirmed right-wing extremist," was published in full by the media. In any case, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) is currently in a standstill pledge – until the Cologne Administrative Court decides on the AfD's urgent application, the party will no longer be officially designated as "confirmed right-wing extremist." Now that it has been published, the report can be critically examined by a broader public.

Communications scientist Stefan Weber, who calls himself a " plagiarism hunter ," has now conducted an initial machine-based review of the report. In his report, which was exclusively obtained by the Berliner Zeitung, Weber concludes that it is a "copy-paste 'report'." At least 20 percent of the 1,100-page document is plagiarized: "Page after page of court rulings were paraphrased, always one at a time." Weber concludes: "You can skip reading the first 70 pages altogether; all court rulings are also available online."

The following pages of the report also consisted primarily of quotations. Since no distinction was made between analysis and evaluation, Weber stated that it is not an expert opinion, but merely a "collection of court rulings and quotations, followed by a subjective evaluation based on a once again opaque evaluation system." When contacted by the Berliner Zeitung, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution declined to comment publicly.

In Germany , it is enshrined in law that domestic intelligence services rely primarily on publicly accessible sources. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution itself states on its website that intelligence means are "only considered as a last resort if all other (milder) means of gathering information are not equally suitable."

In this context, the secrecy surrounding the AfD report has been criticized. Mathias Bordkorb, former SPD Minister of Culture in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, wrote in a guest article in this newspaper before the report's publication: "Secrecy is a tactical mechanism to surround oneself with an aura of invulnerability." Something that is being publicly debated can no longer be considered "secure" without question. "Secrecy is about nothing other than the authority's power."