When editor Dirk Schulz reported in October 2025 in the Lauenburgische Landeszeitung on an event that he himself was leading, his superior saw no need for action. A Press Council complaint is under way.
On 8 October 2025, journalist Dirk Schulz published an article in the Hamburger Abendblatt about the former Edmundsthal-Siemerswalde lung sanatorium in Geesthacht. The article announced a historical guided tour, led by Schulz himself, who serves on a voluntary basis for the Geesthacht Heritage and History Association. This dual role was not mentioned in the article.
What subscribers should know
From my perspective, this is not an abstract question of press ethics. Long-standing subscribers of the Lauenburgische Landeszeitung — many of whom have held their subscription for decades — have a right to know what they are paying for. Whether an article is journalism or a journalist promoting his own activities must be clearly recognisable. That is not a demand; it is a basic condition of the trust between a newspaper and its readership.
Complaint to the Press Council
Upon my enquiry, editor-in-chief Alexander Sulanke replied in writing: the dual function was known to the editorial team; he saw no conflict of interest, as the matter was a "completely non-critical topic". In other words: the Press Code of Ethics applies, except when the editorial team considers the topic harmless. In my reply to him I had written:
"What from the inside appears as journalistic proximity and subject-matter expertise can, from the outside, be perceived as a loss of editorial distance."
This reasoning is, in my view, incompatible with Guideline 6 of the Press Code. The norm admits no topical exception. As soon as an author reports on an event that he himself is leading, a structural conflict of interest exists — regardless of the content. I filed a complaint with the German Press Council. The proceedings were not dismissed but forwarded to the complaints committee.
The contradiction between Sulanke's written position and his own article from June 2026 speaks for itself. The Press Council proceedings are ongoing. The outcome will be published here.
