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Dismissal of Bild director: The love messages he sent in the middle of the night

Erotic messages late at night to young women journalists who had just started their careers were reportedly sent by Julian Reichert, editorial director of Bild, Germany’s largest tabloid, recently fired after complaints about sexual harassment.

According to Spiegel, the messages were received by Reichert’s female colleagues both late at night and after business meetings, with some of them, as the newspaper reveals, writing “You are smart;” or “I want to feel your body.”

Reichert had relationships with younger colleagues known since March 2020. As it turned out, then the publishing house Axel Springer – which publishes Bild and owns both Insider (formerly Business Insider) and, since the summer, Politico – had launched an investigation into the director. On Monday, half a year later, the publishing house finally took action, removing Julian Reichert.

According to Spiegel, after the investigation that started last spring, the editorial director of Bild, had had another sexual relationship with a colleague. Sources at Springer say there was clear evidence that Reichert lied about the relationship during his compliance process in the spring and that he also did not end the relationship after that process. It seems that this breach of trust shown to him is the reason for his dismissal.

The slips and the sexual relations

One of the women who testified against him said, among other things, that Reichert made dozens of copies about her mind, her appearance and her work. Eventually they entered into a relationship, but at one point he asked her to delete the entire history of their messages because “they would have a big problem” something which in the end she did not do.

According to the information that has come to light, Reichert was behaving inappropriately towards his colleagues, especially those who were young and had just started their careers in journalism and while he was the most powerful tabloid journalist. His relationships may have included sexual intercourse that was consensual but which was obviously associated with professional advantages and disadvantages. It also included snapshots in the middle of the night. And finally, it has to do with a way of dealing with women that is nothing but a reflection of the sexism reflected in the pages of the newspaper itself.

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