Author: Devon Rudolph (Page 1 of 2)

Christopher Tamm, 25, is an influencer for the far-right Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party. He defines ‘real men’ in his social media posts. Often wearing a MAGA hat or sporting his coiffed short cut with a sharp side part, Tamm and his social media account exudes a certain masculine aura far right groups hope to create in order to enlist similarly-minded young men to their causes. 

In July, Tamm posted a photo of himself sitting on a couch, reading a book titled “Remigration,” a term used by the far-right to express support for state sanctioned mass deportation for immigrants. In mid-September, Tamm is pictured at a vigil for Charlie Kirk and Iryna Zarutska, with the caption #whitelivesmatter. 

One of Tamm’s most popular posts, which has received over one million views, was published in late May. In this compilation video, several people introduce themselves with their pronouns including someone who describes themselves as a fox, followed by Tamm driving in sunglasses stating that he is “male, white, German.”

Influencers like Tamm, who is in his mid twenties, have helped generate a new wave of AfD support primarily from young, white German men. For Tamm, he wears provocation as a badge of honor: “I like to be the provocateur.” Tamm approaches his social media posts like a “business” with his videos making fun of left wing beliefs. “If you want to be successful, you have to do something that nobody is doing, and you have to find a niche that isn’t occupied. I found a niche with my provocative videos.” 

Jasmine, who is a graduate student at Freie University in Berlin, noticed her younger brother has been pulled to the political right by his social media feed. Her brother, a 17-year-old who now lives in the US but was born in Germany, has been telling her that more deportations are needed and immigrants are going to “replace us in the culture.” She believes that social media algorithms can “indoctrinate you into [an] anti-migrant racist.”

She also explained how the AfD made refugees “scapegoats” for a wide range of problems, as the party advertised that “if we stop the migrants coming in, then suddenly everything will be better.” And far too many, she believes, fell for this promise that she considers a trap.

The AfD party was formed in 2013 as a single-issue party in response to global financial crisis policies that provided bailouts for struggling countries. The AfD promoted beliefs of nationalism that have intensified over the years, with their focus shifting to immigration issues in 2015. 

During the Syrian Civil War, the German government had opened its doors to refugees seeking asylum. Many families were driven from their homes, and the Assad government tortured many who did not support the authoritarian regime. Almost 300,000 Syrian refugees entered Germany in 2015, with an overall 46% migration increase from 2014. Amid this major immigration influx, the AfD shifted focus to anti-immigration politics and began dramatically increasing their party support. 

Tamm resonates with key AfD messaging, specifically “remigration.” He feels that immigrants, especially Muslim practicing immigrants, do not belong in German society.

“If you’re somebody who wants to wear a hijab, you don’t fit into Germany.”

Though Germany does not recognize any specific religion, many women are discriminated against for wearing a hijab, and certain states have banned women from wearing hijabs in government, public education, and clerical positions. While Tamm believes a hijab is a symbol of female suppression, many Muslim women disagree. 

Tamm also believes that immigrants should migrate to countries in which they are most culturally similar, and that leaving one’s country due to hardship was “weak.” For many Syrians, however, Germany offered the greatest promise for opportunity and leaving Syria was not a matter of choice, as they faced torture. 

To recruit others to the AfD cause, Tamm has taken to posting images and short-form videos on social media. Along with several “remigration” posts and messages in support of the MAGA movement, Tamm also targets LGBT+ groups, as there is mixed LGBT+ sentiment within the party. 

In the US, the MAGA movement has been using similar strategies to attract younger male voters, and the Trump administration has similarly cracked down on illegal immigrants. It is unsurprising that the two groups have begun to show signs of unity. 

Back in early 2025, Vance spoke out against the firewall that had formed in Germany against the AfD, stating that it was challenging free speech in the country. 

Since then, Deputy leader of the AfD Beatrix von Storch and AfD Politician from western Germany Joachim Paul had a meeting in September with representatives of the national security council, the vice president’s office and the State Department. Most recently, German influencer and MAGA advisor Alex Bruesewitz visited Berlin in early November and spoke with AfD leaders about their shared goals. 

The spreading popularity of this movement was on full display following the assasination of social media influencer and far-right supporter Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, as protests and gatherings drew large crowds across the country and in Europe. 

Country leaders and officials have posted reactions to Kirk’s death, many of which are aligned with the far-right rhetoric. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán described the left as “hate mongering,” Santiago Abascal, a Congressman in Spain, wrote that the left “wanted this assasination,” and Germany’s Alice Weidel, co-leader of the AfD party, posted on X that “liberal’s hate the left’s way of life.” 

“I am totally not surprised that a party like the AfD that’s still on its way up trying to take power, is going to try to learn everything it can from ideologues and activists in other countries who are singing from the same sheet of music,” one former Foreign Service Officer in the Department of State told me.

Most recently, the US has started to introduce the “remigration” term that is already used throughout the European far-right group. 

Though the growth of the far-right movement worldwide undoubtedly has numerous contributing factors, the AfD grew in tandem with the influx of immigrants. In this wave of Syrian immigrants that caused instability within German society, reporting points towards Russia as an instigator for European refugee immigration. In 2015, Russia’s involvement in the Syria was seen by some as a strategy to destabilize European governments. 

“There were so many Syrians forced into European borders, essentially by collusion,” one former Foreign Service Officer in the Department of State told me. “Putin was trying to use forced migration as a tool to further undermine political stability in Europe.”

“This pressure weakens left wing governments and strengthens the right wing populist movements.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has similarly caused high levels of asylum seekers in Europe, and continual issues involving Finland and Belarus raise further concerns about Russian interference in migration. 

Connections between Germany and Russia are of high concern for many in the government, especially with regard to the military. Last week, members of the Bundestag accused AfD politicians of leaking sensitive defense information to Russian intelligence. Plans for AfD officials to visit Russia has also sparked anger from other parties in government. 

The AfD’s position towards the Russia-Ukraine war is also mixed. Martin Kohler, creator of the youth wing for the AfD, told me that, “Maybe it’s not the official position of my party, but … my opinion is that Zelensky is a bad president. There are many rumors about corruption.”

Many former state department officials have told me that Germany is “soft on Russia.” When asked about the Ukraine war, Tamm said that “we have to clear the problems in our country, and then we can talk [about] what’s happening in the world.”

As support rises, many are alarmed about the implications of far-right and extremism politics. 

Josef Schuster, President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, spoke about concerns for jewish Germans due to increased AfD support. In November, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned about the dangers of extremism in a speech given on the anniversary of the Nazi Kristallnacht, hinting towards the AfD. 

Antisemetic rhetoric was recently a major news story in the US when chats from a Young Republicans’ group chat were published, causing major outrage. 

The AfD youth group, Young Alternative, was dissolved in 2024 due to mounting pressure to avoid broader implications for the AfD party as it faced a potential ban by the German government. Because this group was not directly under control of the AfD party leadership, AfD leaders immediately began pushing for a new group to form for younger audiences. 

“When you want to become a major party in the future, you need the youth because the youth is the future,” Martin Kohler, an AfD politician who played a key role in the creation of the Young Alternative, told me. “It’s much easier for young people to do politics with other young people, because different age groups have different priorities. You are the only young girl or young boy among people over 50, then it’s not that attractive for joining the party.”

On Nov. 29, the AfD moved to officially create a new youth branch affiliated with the larger party in what became a weekend of mass protests against the far-right. Reports estimate that around 25,000 protesters took to the streets in various locations, attempting to delay the meeting in which AfD politicians would formalize the youth group.

“Generation Germany,” as it will now be called, is the name of the youth organization. Over the weekend, AfD party member Alexander Eichwald gave a speech at the founding meeting. The Jerusalem Post reported that the speech was “Hitler-like,” and encouraged a devotion towards Germany. 

Today, Tamm serves as a member of the district council in Prignitz with the AfD, and hopes to continue his career in politics. He was quoted in a New York Times article at an AfD protest, telling a supporter who had his arm in a Hitler salute to “keep your arm up like this a little bit longer.” 

Just a note about this draft, when writing I was really struggling to figure out what additional content should be added. I know the story now is far from the proper word count, and I am still trying to think of additional ways to add new reporting. I also have lots of other interviews that were done for this article but don’t quite fit I’m afraid. 

Christopher Tamm, 25, is sitting on a chair next to an anti-racism bench in Germany as he looks at the camera wearing sunglasses in an Instagram post dated March, 2025. In the caption, Tamm has included the calculation for the estimated cost for the “so-called ‘benches against racism: no room for racism—for diversity!’” as he criticizes their installation using taxpayer money. 

In July, Tamm posted a photo of himself sitting on a couch, reading a book titled “Remigration,” and wearing a Make America Great Again hat. “Remigration” is a term used by the far-right to express support for state sanctioned mass deportation for immigrants. 

In mid-September, Tamm is pictured at a vigil for Charlie Kirk and Iryna Zarutska, with the caption #whitelivesmatter. In an accompanying post, Tamm says that Iryna did not receive public embrace after her death because she was white. 

Tamm’s most popular post, which has received over two million views, was published in late January. In this compilation video, several people introduce themselves with their pronouns including they/them, followed by Tamm’s commentary that he is “right (straight) and German.”

Tamm is one of many German social media influencers for the far-right Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party. The AfD party was formed in 2013 as a single-issue party in response to global financial crisis policies that provided bailouts for struggling countries. The AfD promoted beliefs of nationalism that have intensified over the years, with their focus shifting to immigration issues in 2015. 

During the Syrian Civil War, the German government had opened its doors to refugees seeking asylum. Many families were driven from their homes, and the Assad government tortured many who did not support the authoritarian regime. Almost 300,000 Syrian refugees entered Germany in 2015, with an overall 46% migration increase from 2014. Amid this major immigration influx, the AfD shifted focus to anti-immigration politics and began dramatically increasing their party support. 

Tamm resonates with key AfD messaging, specifically “remigration.” He feels that immigrants, specifically Muslim practicing immigrants, do not belong in German society.

“If you’re somebody who wants to wear a hijab, you don’t fit into Germany.”

Though Germany does not recognize any specific religion, many women are discriminated against for wearing a hijab, and certain states have banned women from wearing hijabs in government, public education, and clerical positions. While Tamm believes a hijab is a symbol of female suppression, many Muslim women disagree. 

Tamm said that immigrants should migrate to countries in which they are most culturally similar, and that leaving one’s country due to hardship was “weak.” For many Syrians, however, Germany offered the greatest promise for opportunity and leaving Syria was not a matter of choice, as they faced torture. 

To recruit others to the AfD cause, Tamm has taken to posting images and short-form videos on social media. He sports a coiffed short cut with a sharp side part and a short mustache and beard. Along with several “remigration” posts and messages in support of the MAGA movement, Tamm also targets LGBT+ groups. 

Though LGBT+ sentiment is mixed within the AfD, and party co-leader Alice Weidel is openly lesbian, anti-immigration messages are uniform throughout. Influencers like Tamm, who is only 25, have helped generate a new wave of AfD support primarily from young, white German men. 

Jasmine, who is a graduate student in Berlin, noticed her younger brother has been pulled to the political right by his social media feed. Her brother, a 17-year-old who now lives in the US but was born in Germany, has been telling her that more deportations are needed and immigrants are going to “replace us in the culture.” She believes that social media algorithms can “indoctrinate you into [an] anti-migrant racist.”

She also explained how the AfD made refugees “scapegoats” for a wide range of problems, as the party advertised that “if we stop the migrants coming in, then suddenly everything will be better.” And far too many, she believes, fell for this promise that she considers a trap.

For Tamm, he wears provocation as a badge of honor: “I like to be the provocateur.” Tamm approaches his social media posts like a “business” with his videos making fun of left wing beliefs. “If you want to be successful, you have to do something that nobody is doing, and you have to find a niche that isn’t occupied. I found a niche with my provocative videos.” 

Provocation is not an idea unique to the AfD party. In the US, the MAGA movement has been using similar strategies to attract younger male voters, and the Trump administration has similarly cracked down on illegal immigrants. It is unsurprising that the two groups have begun to show signs of unity. 

Back in early 2025, Vance spoke out against the firewall that had formed in Germany against the AfD, stating that it was challenging free speech in the country. 

Since then, Deputy leader of the AfD Beatrix von Storch and AfD Politician from western Germany Joachim Paul had a meeting in September with representatives of the national security council, the vice president’s office and the State Department. Most recently, German influencer and MAGA advisor Alex Bruesewitz visited Berlin in early November and spoke with AfD leaders about their shared goals. 

The spreading popularity of this movement was on full display following the assasination of social media influencer and far-right supporter Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, as protests and gatherings drew large crowds across the country and in Europe. 

Country leaders and officials have posted reactions to Kirk’s death, many of which are aligned with the far-right rhetoric. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán described the left as “hate mongering,” Santiago Abascal, a Congressman in Spain, wrote that the left “wanted this assasination,” and Germany’s Alice Weidel, co-leader of the AfD party, posted on X that “liberal’s hate the left’s way of life.” 

“I am totally not surprised that a party like the AfD that’s still on its way up trying to take power, is going to try to learn everything it can from ideologues and activists in other countries who are singing from the same sheet of music,” one former Foreign Service Officer in the Department of State told me.

From here, my plan is to move into AfD ties with Russia then concerns about antisemitism. End with kicker of Tamm at protest in Nazi salute. 

Note: This includes everything I have written so far for the final not just the lede and nutgraf. I posted everything to get a sense of the final structure, but it is not a fully completed draft. 

It was Christopher Tamm’s parents who first taught him not to trust the German government. Now, he is a member of the district council in Prignitz with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, the far-right group opposed to immigration and openly hostile towards the other parties in government. 

Tamm’s father grew up in east Germany under the Soviet Union and witnessed firsthand the German reunification process in the 1990s. He was angered by the new capitalistic government destroying industries tailored to a communist government, and politicians moving from the west to govern over a community to which they did not belong. 

Tamm’s mother grew up in Soviet Russia and was familiar with the communist lifestyle, especially the curtailments of freedoms imposed by the government. For her, though, the government never pledged more, whereas Tamm’s father had to “learn it the hard way” that the “promise land” for east Germans did not match the public expectation. “He saw with his own eyes that not everything gold is shiny,” Tamm said. 

The experiences of Tamm’s parents shaped his childhood, as they instilled their beliefs “not to believe too much in the government,” but rather to “believe more in yourself.” For Tamm, though, these thoughts ended up shaping political views for years to come, especially his disapproval around government policies aiding immigration. 

—

The AfD party was formed in 2013 as a single-issue party in response to global financial crisis policies that provided bailouts for struggling countries. Believing that Germany should have its own currency in place of the euro, the AfD promoted beliefs of nationalism that have intensified over the years. 

During the Syrian Civil War, the German government had opened its doors to refugees seeking asylum. Many families were driven from their homes, and the Assad government tortured many who did not support the authoritarian regime. Almost 300,000 Syrian refugees entered Germany in 2015, with an overall 46% migration increase from 2014. Amid this major immigration influx, the AfD shifted focus to anti-immigration politics and began dramatically increasing their party support. 

The message the AfD shared with supporters seemed oversimplified to some. Jasmine, a graduate student at Freie University in Berlin, described how the party made refugees scapegoats for a wide range of problems, as the party advertised that “if we stop the migrants coming in, then suddenly everything will be better.” And far too many, she believes, fell for this “trap.”

—

Tamm’s introduction to migrants came as a 13-year-old student in Bavaria where in 2015, he noticed a major influx of migrants in his classes.

Many Germans were not accustomed to seeing so many refugees in their neighborhoods. Tamm remembers many migrants at his school asking for money in the hallways and the cafeteria. 

“I wanted to give them something, but I didn’t have much money, so I thought maybe I can give them some food. I gave him my grapefruit and my lunch bread, and he didn’t want it. I didn’t understand why, so I gave it to him again, and then he just threw it on the floor and said in German, ‘money, money.’”

After arriving in Germany, migrants were given support from the government for housing, healthcare, financial assistance, and language courses. Most refugees were required to pass language tests before being allowed to work in Germany, the process for which takes several months to over a year. In the meanwhile, immigrant families relied on monthly government stipends, which were more generous than many other countries but still required frugality.

For Tamm, though, this interaction with refugees at his school left a lasting negative impression.

—

The wave of Syrian immigrants caused instability within German society. Reporting points towards Russia as an instigator for European refugee immigration. In 2015, [include coverage]

“There were so many Syrians forced into European borders, essentially by collusion between Damascus and Moscow,” one former Foreign Service Officer in the Department of State told me. “Putin was trying to use forced migration as a tool to further undermine political stability in Europe.”

“This pressure weakens left wing governments and strengthens the right wing populist movements.”

One consequence of growing right-wing support in Europe has been increased connection between far-right parties, including ties with the Trump administration. 

[Include Vance free speech criticisms]

Since then, Deputy leader of the AfD Beatrix von Storch and AfD Politician from western Germany Joachim Paul had a meeting in September with representatives of the national security council, the vice president’s office and the State Department. Most recently, German influencer and MAGA advisor Alex Bruesewitz visited Berlin in early November and spoke with AfD leaders about their shared goals. 

The spreading popularity of this movement was on full display following the assasination of social media influencer and far-right supporter Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, as protests and gatherings drew large crowds across the country and in Europe. 

Country leaders and officials have posted reactions to Kirk’s death, many of which are aligned with the far-right rhetoric. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán described the left as “hate mongering,” Santiago Abascal, a Congressman in Spain, wrote that the left “wanted this assasination,” and Germany’s Alice Weidel, co-leader of the AfD party, posted on X that “liberal’s hate the left’s way of life.” Tamm is also tagged in an Instagram post by another AfD politician at a remembrance ceremony for Kirk and Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian who was fatally stabbed in North Carolina. 

“I am totally not surprised that a party like the AfD that’s still on its way up trying to take power, is going to try to learn everything it can from ideologues and activists in other countries who are singing from the same sheet of music,” the former member of the Department of State said.

—

After finishing school, Tamm planned to study law in Vienna. He arrived in 2020 when strict covid rules put the country in lock down. Tamm never made it to law school, instead he moved to Russia because didn’t want to live in a country that would prevent him from “going out [to] parties and having fun.”

Tamm moved back to Germany after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. He wanted to make sure that if a war spilled into Germany he would be able to serve, and he joined the army. In his company, Tamm remembered over half of the soldiers were from Afghan or Syrian or Moroccan descent. Though many were proud to have been raised in Germany and held passports, Tamm would not consider them German. 

“No matter how much you assimilate in a country, you cannot be 100% from that country.” Tamm believes that those of different ethnic backgrounds should not be classified as German, including children of immigrants in the second or third generations. 

Tamm distinguishes himself from people who have German passports but are not “real Germans.” 

Tamm was discharged from service after being deemed a security threat when the administration found out he had been living in Russia for more than half of the past five years. He was upset that he was dismissed while those from immigrant families were allowed to stay in the army, Tamm said. 

—

Connections between Germany and Russia are of high concern for many in the government, especially with regard to the military. Last week, members of the Bundestag accused AfD politicians of leaking sensitive defense information to Russian intelligence. Plans for AfD officials to visit Russia has also sparked anger from other parties in government. 

The AfD’s position towards the Russia-Ukraine war is also mixed. Martin Kohler, creator of the youth wing for the AfD, told me that, “Maybe it’s not the official position of my party, but … my opinion is that Zelensky is a bad president. There are many rumors about corruption.”

Many former state department officials have told me that Germany is “soft on Russia.” When asked about the Ukraine war, Tamm said that “we have to clear the problems in our country, and then we can talk what’s happening in the world.”

This idea of putting one’s own country “first” is not a new concept. [Discuss Trump administration]

—

Leaving the army sparked Tamm’s decision to enter the field of politics and was attracted to the anti-immigration sentiments from the AfD. 

In 2023 when Tamm joined the AfD, party support was around 20% nationally, and currently support has risen to 25% nationally, with more popularity in east German communities formerly part of the Soviet Union. 

Tamm resonates with the key party messaging, including the idea of “remigration,” or the idea that non-ethnic German migrants should be deported to their countries of origin. He feels that immigrants, specifically Muslim practicing immigrants, do not belong in German society.

“If you’re somebody who wants to wear a hijab, you don’t fit into Germany.”

Though Germany does not recognize any specific religion, many women are discriminated against for wearing a hijab, and certain states have banned women from wearing hijabs in government, public education, and clerical positions. While Tamm believes a hijab is a symbol of female suppression, many Muslim women disagree. 

Tamm said that immigrants should migrate to countries in which they are most culturally similar, and that leaving one’s country due to hardship was “weak.” For many Syrians, however, Germany offered the greatest promise for opportunity and leaving Syria was not a matter of choice, as they faced torture. 

To recruit others to the AfD cause, Tamm has taken to posting images and short-form videos on social media. He sports a coiffed short cut with a sharp side part and a short mustache and beard. Along with several “remigration” posts and a MAGA hat selfie on his Instagram, Tamm targets LGBT+ groups. One video, which gained over a million views, clips of people saying in German “I’m gay,” “I’m lesbian,” “I’m transgender,” “I’m actually a fox,” is followed by his statement made driving a car “I’m m/w/g — male, white, German.”

Though LGBT+ sentiment is mixed within the AfD, and party co-leader Alice Weidel is openly lesbian, anti-immigration messages are uniform throughout. Influencers like Tamm, who is only 24, have helped generate a new wave of AfD support primarily from young, white German men. 

Jasmine noticed her younger brother has been pulled to the political right by his social media feed. Her brother, a 17-year-old who now lives in the US but was born in Germany, has been telling her that more deportations are needed and immigrants are going to “replace us in the culture.” She believes that social media algorithms can “indoctrinate you into [an] anti-migrant racist.”

Tamm approaches his social media posts like a “business” with his videos making fun of left wing beliefs. “If you want to be successful, you have to do something that nobody is doing, and you have to find a niche that isn’t occupied. I found a niche with my provocative videos.” 

—

As support rises, may warn against the troubles of far-right politics

[Recent warning from German president about antisemetic worries, and maybe a ban following youth group ban]

[Anti semitic chat leaks, similar to those in the US] 

Today, Tamm serves as a member of the district council in Prignitz with the AfD, and hopes to continue his career in politics. He was recently quoted in a New York Times article at an AfD protest, telling a supporter who had his arm in a Hitler salute to “keep your arm up like this a little bit longer.” 

In the readings for this week, I found the lede in the NYT article about the sex worker the strongest. By starting off the article with a woman falling, the reader is immediately drawn in, reading on to figure out how she got there and if she will survive. Because gravity is so fast acting, the author is able to slow down her fall by talking about the circumstances of the situation while the reader is picturing her in mid-air, waiting for her to reach the ground. In my head, I was truly picturing a woman, suspended mid fall, as I eagerly finished the lede to understand her fate. 

Another capturing lede I enjoyed was the article about Apello. This opening, along with the story as a whole, is made powerful by the geographical queues. When the man walks outside of his house, allowing the reader to picture how close he was to the front lines sets the dangerous tone throughout the story. After the lede, I appreciate how the article was told walking through the area and stopping at important landmarks for the main character. Within this clear structure, there were breaks with other stories being told, then the focus would shift again back to the main storyline of the author walking with the narrator. I found that this was a clear way to tell many different stories, many of which were in different times that were not chronologically organized, in a concise way. 

The structure for the article about AI in Gaza is a little more straightforward, especially since the article is not quite as long as the other stories. Reading the article, it follows one stream of thought with chronological interruptions used in order to add or expand on ideas. This style seems to be the most common for medium sized stories, especially ones that do not have one central character who requires a longer telling of their lifetime. 

John McPhee’s chapter about frame of reference was a little less impactful for me as a reader. My main takeaway from this chapter was that it is important for journalists to be cognizant of their target audience, and to be sparing with references that many may not understand. Most of the chapter seemed like McPhee was reminiscing on years past when references of his generation would add to a story as most of the audience would make the connection. While I do agree that, in general, pop-culture type references should be avoided for readability, this chapter didn’t quite seem so pertinent to today’s lesson. I do this this message may inform my reporting in the sense that any reference to past events should also include a small description or a link to keep clarity.

My article will be focused around how Germany’s AfD party is recruiting young white men. The article will start from the beginnings of the AfD party, their rise to power, political factors that influence demographic support, and finally the youth movement. A majority of the information for the context of this article has come from various interviews prior to the Berlin trip. Most importantly, I will include interviews from AfD politicians and those who have seen this rise affect their lives. The people I met in Berlin will become characters in my story, including the young AfD social media activist who I wrote my profile about. Additionally, I hope to talk more with a Freie student about her experiences with the AfD party and how it is affecting her younger brother who has been leaning more and more to the right. Since he has not yet agreed to an interview, I can’t say for sure this will be my main story line.

Because I haven’t finalized a main character for this story, I have been brainstorming more ideas to find the through line. One of my interviewees mentioned that she was an intern at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, which focuses on extremism in social media. In addition to this organization, I will be including some evidence from videos posted by social media influencers to serve as direct evidence. Another method for contacting sources will be to directly message people who liked or commented on these types of post. 

I also would be interested in comparing the movement in Germany to the rightward shift more broadly across Europe and in the US. The main AfD politician who I will be including in the story has posted on his Instagram a selfie wearing a MAGA hat. Another aspect that I also want to include, but am not yet sure where it should go, is opinion that many hold that the democrats did not do a good job in their messaging in the past few decades, and are partially at fault for this movement.

The key theme that I took away from the readings this week is that there is no “one size fits all” for journalism. This was especially communicated in the Rosenthal article with different napkin drawings, and how varied the designs were. It also demonstrates the more abstract thought that goes into a piece, with dips and gradients representing how a reader could be feeling, not necessarily the specific words that they are receiving. 

I found the New Yorker piece by John McPhee especially impactful for my own reporting right now. It is hard to believe that an author, after having published many successful works, still feels so unsure about their own abilities when starting a new assignment. It almost gives me a little more confidence, knowing that even the best of the best can struggle with issues like writer’s block and an overall confusion with the amount of information that must go into a piece. I liked the quote that “you’re last one is not going to write your next one,” because it speaks to the shifting nature of journalism. Every story is unique to the characters, and just as your content is varied, so must be the structure. 

The feeling McPhee described, not knowing how to structure a story after having collected interviews and research, feels somewhat like my current position, though on a very different scale. Now that we have returned from Germany and I have enough content to fill more than enough pages, I am struggling to find the through-line for my piece. McPhee wrote the perfect metaphor for this moment, it is like returning from the grocery store, and setting all the materials out on the table. The biggest challenge and asset is the main character. As McPhee described, once he figured out who was going to tell the story, the rest came to him much more easily. Notecards of information fell into place, almost like a giant puzzle knowing which cards needed to be touching, close, or sequential, fitting them all together for the final structure of the article.

 The last piece by Stewart gave strong general tips for using chronological order in any article. Oftentimes when I am writing my own stories, it makes the most sense to lay every detail on a timeline just to get a better sense of the story before I begin writing. I liked how this article discussed elements that never really need to be in chronological order, like background info or small events outside the script. This is because a story that is scene driven has specific elements that are the most important and other details can be worked in where relevant. There was also a strong emphasis on how a writer is shifting to be inside different characters’ minds, and to be intentional in how this tool is being used.

The embedded stories we read for this week all seem to have one common theme: they try to give a voice to issues otherwise overlooked. This mission, which often takes months or years of reporting, is a core belief of long-form journalism that is especially pronounced in these types of stories. If not for journalists doing this type of work, unjust actions from powerful parties would go unchecked, and it is why I believe journalism is a public service integral to the maintenance of democracy. 

The In the Dark podcast is a clear example of excellent narrative journalism. This format of episodes allows the New Yorker to present the story that otherwise would have taken up enough pages to fill a book, in an engaging manner. The listener is also able to see the actions of the reporter, their diligent work traveling to so many countries to find the right people to interview. In this open method of communication, the reporter derives their authority to tell the story, showing their work along the way. 

I was also especially impressed by the reporter who, when covering the Darien gap, made the journey twice herself. It is one thing to record the experiences of immigrants who survived the daunting trip, but it is another to make the trek along with the main subjects of the story. Far easier, the reporter could have found families who were willing to speak about the struggles of crossing the almost 70 miles of land in the jungle, but this would not have been able to capture the true feelings of the immigrants in the moment. By reporting in-person in high-risk areas, journalists are best equipped to tell stories of people living in those conditions. This holds true for front line war reporting as well. Just as soldiers are needed to fight wars, journalists are needed to ensure the public is kept informed about the conflict.

The reporting about Israeli intelligence agency coercion towards the International Criminal Court was an example of a different type of embedded coverage. In this piece by the Guardian, they were acting more as investigators, collaborating with other media sources in Palestine in order to gather the best information. 

For me personally, this type of reporting is really appealing because it offers the opportunity to fully investigate an issue and report something that is brand new. Often many news organizations cover public events in very similar articles. This reporting is also important because it maintains coverage on the day-to-day happenings of the government and other organizations, but I find myself more attracted to the reporting that is new when published. Learning about the types of projects these journalists have taken on is inspiring and helps me begin to think about what type of reporter I want to be in the future.

It was Christopher Tamm’s parents who first taught him not to trust the German government. Now, he is a member of the district council in Prignitz with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, the far-right group opposed to immigration and openly hostile towards the other parties in government. 

Tamm’s father grew up in east Germany under the Soviet Union and witnessed firsthand the German reunification process in the 1990s. He was angered by the new capitalistic government destroying industries that were previously successful, and politicians moving from the west to govern over a community to which they did not belong. 

Tamm’s mother grew up in Soviet Russia and was familiar with the communist lifestyle, especially the curtailments of freedoms imposed by the government. For her, though, the government never pledged more, whereas Tamm’s father had to “learn it the hard way” that the “promise land” for east Germans did not match the public expectation. “He saw with his own eyes that not everything gold is shiny,” Tamm said. 

The experiences of Tamm’s parents shaped his childhood, as they instilled their beliefs “not to believe too much in the government,” but rather to “believe more in yourself.” For Tamm, though, these thoughts ended up shaping political views for years to come, especially his disapproval around government policies aiding immigration. 

Tamm’s introduction to migrants came as a 13 year old student in Bavaria where in 2015, he noticed a major influx of migrants in his classes.

At the time, the German government had opened its borders to Syrian refugees seeking asylum. In Syria, civil war was driving families from their homes, with the Assad government torturing many who did not support the authoritarian regime. Almost 300,000 Syrian refugees entered Germany in 2015, with an overall 46% migration increase from 2014. 

Many Germans were not accustomed to seeing so many refugees in their neighborhoods. Tamm remembers many migrants at his school asking for money in the hallways and the cafeteria. 

“I wanted to give them something, but I didn’t have much money, so I thought maybe I can give them some food. I gave him my grapefruit and my lunch bread, and he didn’t want it. I didn’t understand why, so I gave it to him again, and then he just threw it on the floor and said in German, ‘money, money.’”

After arriving in Germany, migrants were given support from the government for housing, healthcare, financial assistance, and language courses. Most refugees were required to pass language tests before being allowed to work in Germany, the process for which takes several months to over a year. In the meanwhile, immigrant families relied on monthly government stipends, which were more generous than many other countries but still required frugality.

For Tamm, though, this interaction with refugees at his school left a lasting negative impression.

After finishing school, Tamm planned to study law in Vienna. He arrived in 2020 when strict Covid rules put the country in lock down. Tamm never made it to law school, instead he moved to Russia because he didn’t want to live in a country that would prevent him from “going out [to] parties and having fun.”

Tamm moved back to Germany after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. He wanted to make sure that if a war spilled into Germany he would be able to serve, and he joined the army. In his company, Tamm remembered over half of the soldiers were from Afghan or Syrian or Moroccan descent. Though many were proud to have been raised in Germany and held passports, Tamm would not consider them German. 

“No matter how much you assimilate in a country, you cannot be 100% from that country.” Tamm believes that those of different ethnic backgrounds should not be classified as German, including children of immigrants in the second or third generations. 

Tamm was discharged from service after being deemed a security threat when the administration found out he had been living in Russia for more than half of the past five years. He was upset that he was dismissed while those from immigrant families were allowed to stay in the army, Tamm said. Tamm distinguishes himself from people who have German passports but are not “real Germans.”

Leaving the army sparked Tamm’s decision to enter the field of politics and was attracted to the anti-immigration sentiments from the AfD. “That’s the point where I didn’t understand our security politics, and I decided to get politically active.”

In 2023 when Tamm joined the AfD, party support was around 20% nationally. The AfD was initially created in 2013 as a single-issue party in response to global financial crisis policies that provided bailouts for struggling countries. In 2015, the AfD shifted focus to anti-immigration politics amid the influx of Syrian immigrants and intensified its nationalistic beliefs. Currently, AfD support has risen to 25% nationally, with more popularity in east German communities formerly part of the Soviet Union. 

Tamm resonates with the key party messaging, including the idea of “remigration,” that non-ethnic German migrants should be deported to their countries of origin. He feels that immigrants, specifically Muslim practicing immigrants, do not belong in German society.

“If you’re somebody who wants to wear a hijab, you don’t fit into Germany.”

Though Germany does not recognize any specific religion, many women are discriminated against for wearing a hijab, and certain states have banned women from wearing hijabs in government, public education, and clerical positions. Tamm would support his belief by saying that a hijab is a symbol of female suppression, though many Muslim women disagree. 

Tamm said that immigrants should migrate to countries in which they are most culturally similar, and that leaving one’s country due to hardship was “weak.” For many Syrians, however, Germany offered the greatest promise for opportunity and leaving Syria was not a matter of choice, as they faced torture. 

To recruit others to the AfD cause, Tamm has taken to posting images and short-form videos on social media. He sports a coiffed short cut with a sharp side part and a short mustache and beard. Along with several “remigration” posts and a MAGA hat selfie on his Instagram, Tamm targets LGBT+ groups. One video, which gained over a million views, clips of people saying in German “I’m gay,” “I’m lesbian,” “I’m transgender,” “I’m actually a fox,” is followed by his statement made driving a car “I’m m/w/g — male, white, German.”

Though LGBT+ sentiment is mixed within the AfD, and party co-leader Alice Weidel is openly lesbian, anti-immigration messages are uniform throughout. Influencers like Tamm, who is only 24, have helped generate a new wave of AfD support primarily from young, white German men. 

Jasmine, who is a graduate student at Freie University in Berlin, noticed her younger brother has been pulled to the political right by his social media feed. Her brother, a 17-year-old who now lives in the US but was born in Germany, has been telling her that more deportations are needed and immigrants are going to “replace us in the culture.” She believes that social media algorithms can “indoctrinate you into [an] anti-migrant racist.”

Tamm approaches his social media posts like a “business” with his videos making fun of left wing beliefs. “If you want to be successful, you have to do something that nobody is doing, and you have to find a niche that isn’t occupied. I found a niche with my provocative videos.” 

Today, Tamm serves as a member of the district council in Prignitz with the AfD, and hopes to continue his career in politics. He was recently quoted in a New York Times article at an AfD protest, telling a supporter who had his arm in a Hitler salute to “keep your arm up like this a little bit longer.” At the protest, Tamm was wearing an AfD youth hoodie, a group which was banned by German intelligence for being extremist. 

The readings for this week included examples of powerful first person narratives, combining the personal experience of the author interacting with other characters to tell a story about culture. Both Peter Hessler and Deborah Amos’s stories were discussions of activities occurring due to circumstances specific to their location.

Hessler’s article discussing the trash collection process in Cairo not only explained why the system operates within the informal economy, but showed a snapshot of cultural beliefs through the garbage collector Sayyid. This article I find particularly powerful because the reader is let into Hessler’s world, as we move chronologically through his experiences with Sayyid. An article discussing statistics about religious practices, divorce rates, or drug problems in Cairo would not be able to show the interaction of these three elements within the society, much less convey a convincing narrative about the realities of life. It is helpful to tell this story through Hessler’s perspective also because it allows us to have interiority with Sayyid. Excluding the first person element could have made the story less convincing if it claimed to know a great deal about Sayyid without telling the reader how a relationship between him and Hessler was built before that information was shared. 

Similarly, Amos’s story describes a nightclub scene in the first person voice. As the reader, understanding how Amos was able to enter the club gave the story a greater legitimacy, as it is clear that the actions of other characters was not preformative. Readers are then able to gain access to areas like the women’s restroom, understanding the pretenses under which the information is being gained. When Amos is describing her uneasy feelings, the reader can also better picture the scene in the nightclub and its atmosphere. With an article like this where the author is posing to be someone they are not, I wonder about the ethical limits for the information they can include, even if it is from the first person perspective. When a source is giving quotes, we are able to use whatever they said since it is attributed, and I am curious if that rule also applies for an author writing in first person.

I found some of the tips mentioned in the article about interviewing particularly useful. Especially in long-form writing, I understand the importance of cultivating a relationship with an interviewee, and making sure they see you as more than a robot reporter. I liked the tip about asking to meet in the source’s house, since you are given an opportunity to see parts of their life in pictures on the walls and have a greater sense of their lived experiences. I would also agree with the point that, once a main character is found, the story practically writes itself.

By: Siyeon Lee

10/15/25

BERLIN — “I feel like I’ve lived three lifetimes in one day,” my friend and colleague Alex Norbrook told me as I joined him in the dining room at half past ten. The ends of my pants were soaked and ragged, disintegrating from the rain; a gaping hole now adorned my leather bag. Indeed, I felt like I had traversed multiple different worlds within the span of 12 hours — from French patisseries, Palestinian bookstores, to the Berlin Wall, the only unified aspect of my striking day was my constantly drenched hair.

I started off the morning with my classmates Josie, Raphi, and Miriam visiting the Berlin Wall. Plastered in layers of graffiti and underwhelming in its physical stature (especially in comparison to its overwhelming historical one), we engaged in ranging conversations, from the meaning of a Princeton education to the implications of Bari Weiss’ appointment as CBS’ Editor-in-Chief. As per the recommendation of Raphi’s friend, we then headed to a French patisserie with outdoor seating and ate lunch.

After lunch, Raphi, Miriam and I then headed to Sonnenallee, the most famous Arab neighborhood in Berlin. We visited a Palestinian bookstore and an eccentric second-hand clothing store with a not-so-eccentric name (‘Second Hand’); I then departed to conduct my two interviews for the day. 

My first conversation was with Berit Ebert, a professor of EU law and the politics of gender equality in Europe. Ten floors above ground at a hotel bar, Ebert and I ordered a coffee and spent the hour speaking about her work, the intricacies of the EU’s procedures, and Israel-Palestine coverage in Germany. Afterward, I headed back to Sonnenallee for my interview with Hesham Moamadani, Syrian refugee and former investigative journalist who now works at Bard as a ‘Civics Engagement Officer.’ 

Sitting in a levantine restaurant with steaming chicken kebabs in hand, the 30-something Moamadani wore a toothy smile and a handsome face that betrayed little of his harrowing life story. For the next four hours, Moamadani recounted the experience of his escape from war-ridden Syria in 2015. He spoke about his protests against the Assad government that nearly led to his death, as well as his 8-hour-long swim from coastal Turkey to Greece. 

Speaking about his other interview experiences, he said, “I don’t like it when people reduce my life just to my experience as a refugee,” pulling a brown leather pouch from his pocket. “I’m more than just that identity, you know?” 

As Moamadani grabbed a pinchful of tobacco leaves from his unzipped pouch and expertly rolled then lit his cigarette, I idled at the edge of the restaurant entry, knowing little to say nor do. 

Rainwater had accumulated into a wide, ocean-like puddle beneath the restaurant stairs — we were trapped. “Just jump,” he said. “You got it.”