THE IBIZA VIDEO: A JOURNALISTIC CRIME STORY
At the moment, I unfortunately have very little time for my blog, but I plan to deliver weekly news on the subject of forensic science here from January 2022. Many of you know that in 2019 I examined the authenticity of the Ibiza videos for Spiegel and Süddeutsche Zeitung before they were published. Now Sky has produced a film as well as a documentary that I would like to highlight.
The documentary to the fictional series “The Ibiza Affair”
On 17 May 2019 a secretly recorded video triggered the biggest political scandal in Austrian post-war history: the Ibiza Affair. The documentary film “The Ibiza Video: A Journalistic Crime Story” recapitulates the events leading up to the publication of the explosive material by Süddeutsche Zeitung and Der Spiegel. The ninety-minute documentary is a production by i&u TV commissioned by Sky Studios and is available on demand on Sky Ticket and via Sky Q from 21 October. On 26 October, “The Ibiza Video: A Journalistic Crime Story” will be broadcast on Sky Documentaries. Also from 21 October the four-part fictional series “The Ibiza Affair,” produced by W&B Television on behalf of Sky Studios, will be available on Sky Ticket and via Sky Q on demand. International distribution is managed by NBCU Global Distribution on behalf of Sky Studios.
Lucia Vogdt, Executive Producer, Sky: “The Ibiza Affair is on the one hand a political scandal like no other and on the other hand an important example of the central role independent journalism plays as the fourth estate for our society and politics. We are therefore very pleased to offer our clients, in addition to the fictional series ‘The Ibiza Affair,’ Jörg Falbe’s documentary, which provides a deeper insight into the work of journalists and a comprehensive analysis of the political scandal.”
Jörg Falbe, Director and Author: “In times of constant news overload on the internet, alternative facts from dubious sources and not always honorable motives of self-appointed truth-seekers on YouTube and similar platforms, many people ask: What should they still believe, whom can they still trust? ‘The Ibiza Video’ is a plea for incorruptible quality journalism and the relentless search for truth.”
About “The Ibiza Video: A Journalistic Crime Story”:
On 17 May 2019 the Süddeutsche Zeitung and the news magazine Der Spiegel jointly published excerpts of a secretly recorded video, thereby triggering the biggest political scandal in Austrian post-war history: the Ibiza Affair. Already the next day FPÖ leader Heinz-Christian Strache resigned from his office as Vice-Chancellor.
At the center of the 90-minute documentary “The Ibiza Video: A Journalistic Crime Story” are Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier, whose investigative work resembles a crime story: before the two journalists from the Süddeutsche Zeitung obtained the full-length secretly recorded video, several conspiratorial meetings with the makers of the video were necessary, and all facts had to be meticulously verified under high pressure. The video shows a meeting between FPÖ chairman Heinz-Christian Strache and an alleged niece of a Russian oligarch in a finca in Ibiza. Their seven-hour conversation repeatedly focused on political quid pro quo for financial support of the FPÖ, a corrupt practice that the journalists and their team, together with editors from Der Spiegel, could only disclose to the public once they had proven the authenticity of the video.
Through numerous interviews with some of the people involved, as well as with Austrian journalists and experts on the Austrian political scene, head author and director Jörg Falbe reconstructs the long journey to the publication of the scandal video. In doing so, the documentary by i&u TV not only traces the rise and fall of the populist Heinz-Christian Strache but also emphasizes the central role of journalism in holding those in power accountable. The political earthquake of the Ibiza Affair continues to shake Austrian politics to this day. In addition to journalists Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier, their colleague Leila Al-Serori, a native of Vienna who has also critically examined Heinz-Christian Strache’s past, contributes her insights. Strache’s former bodyguard Oliver Ribarich speaks for the first time exclusively about the case. Real estate agent Irena Markovic, who unwittingly established the first contact between the makers of the Ibiza video, the alleged Russian oligarch’s niece, and Strache’s right-hand man Johann Gudenus (FPÖ), also provides her account, as does Hans Mahr, former political chief of the Kronen-Zeitung and an intimate connoisseur of Austrian politics. Further interview partners in the documentary include Florian Klenk, Editor-in-Chief of Der Falter, Corinna Milborn, Editor-in-Chief of PULS 4, political science professor Peter Filzmaier, political advisor Stefan Petzner, a former politician and campaign advisor of Jörg Haider, as well as video forensic expert George A. Rauscher (why am I listed here at the end?).
Facts:
Original title: “The Ibiza Video: A Journalistic Crime Story”, Documentary approx. 90 minutes, Germany 2021. Screenplay and Direction: Jörg Falbe. Producer i&u: Axel Pfeiffer. Executive Producers Sky: Lucia Vogdt, Frank Jastfelder, Marcus Ammon. Associate Producer: Sebastian Stobbe. Interview partners: Bastian Obermayer, Frederik Obermaier, Leila Al-Serori, Oliver Ribarich, Irena Markovic, Hans Mahr, Florian Klenk, Corinna Milborn, Prof. Peter Filzmaier, Stefan Petzner, George A. Rauscher.
Broadcast Dates:
From 21 October 2021 on the streaming service Sky Ticket and available on demand via Sky Q. On 26 October 2021 from 8.15 p.m. on Sky Documentaries.
From 21 October on Sky Ticket and via Sky Q on demand.
On 26 October on Sky Documentaries.
A production of i&u TV on behalf of Sky Studios.
How investigative journalists Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier uncovered a political scandal.
Head Author and Director Jörg Falbe reconstructs the case through interviews with some participants and experts of the Austrian political scene.
Photo Credit: Insa Rauscher, i&u TV.
Source: Sky Germany, transmitted via news aktuell.