Deutsche Welle and Heiko Maas - sometimes with a mask, sometimes without

From Maas in Ankara to Widmann-Mauz in the Black Forest to Steinmeier in South Tyrol, the upper only adhere to their rules for the lower when they see cameras or supply images to the media.

Photographer Cem Osdel and the “Picture Alliance” took pictures of the foreign ministers of Germany and Turkey at their photo session in Ankara, once with and once without a face mask. Deutsche Welle used both - each adapted to the German and Turkish published opinion: unmasked for the Turkish readership in the Turkish language service of the German public international broadcaster, however, masked for the German readers

Could this practice also apply to political agreements?

Liebe @DeutscheWelle,

können Sie uns erklären, warum auf dem Bild Ihrer deutschsprachigen Seite Masken getragen werden, jedoch nicht auf dem Bild Ihrer türkischsprachigen Seite?

Es handelt sich ja um dasselbe Ereignis, wieso also dieser Unterschied in der Berichterstattung? https://t.co/KbWHUqZyLo

— Argo Nerd (@argonerd) January 18, 2021

Above: "Dear @DeutscheWelle, Can you explain to us why masks are worn on the picture on your German-language website, but not on the picture on your Turkish-language website? It's about the same event, so why this difference in reporting?"

For the Turkish-speaking and German-speaking consumers, DW apparently not only considered the pictures of the meeting, but also the reports about it, unreasonable. While the German version contains a mixed report from news agencies under the heading “Maas wishes for rapprochement between EU and Turkey”, a DW correspondent named Hilal Köylü from Ankara makes it clear to Turkish-speaking readers which side sets the tone in the headline: "Ankara AB'yle 'pozitif gündem' arayışında" (according to the google translation: "Ankara looking for a 'positive agenda' with the EU").

The photo practice of Deutsche Welle is reminiscent of Ms. Widmann-Mauz, integration officer at the CDU, who posed once with and once without a mask for the same motif at a press conference at the end of September, 2020:

Or to Federal President Steinmeier, who can address admonishing words to the critics of the Covid measures a moment beforehand in order not to obey his own words shortly afterwards:

Gemeinsame Überlegungen zur politischen #Lage in Südtirol, #Italien u. #Deutschland u. zur aktuellen Entwicklung in #Europa haben LH @ArnoKompatscher u. der deutsche #Bundespräsident Frank-Walter Steinmeier kürzlich bei einem Treffen in #Südtirol gemacht.https://t.co/Pe2Qe7p6vv pic.twitter.com/yxcK9OWBrI

— Land Südtirol (@LandSuedtirol) July 28, 2020

Above: "Governor @ArnoKompatscher and the German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier recently made joint considerations on the political situation in South Tyrol, Italy and Germany and on the current development in Europe at a meeting in South Tyrol."

Source: Tichys Einblick