Theo Loch, editor-in-chief of WDR in Cologne, one of West Germany’s largest television and radio stations, is expected to take early retirement because of new revelations of his Nazi past. Most of the station’s editors have called for his dismissal.
Loch, 61, a card-carrying Nazi and an officer of the Waffen SS during World War II, underwent the “denazification” process after the war and was classified by the Allied occupation authorities as a “mitlaeufer” (fellow-traveller). As such, he was hired by WDR, at which time he provided details of his wartime activities. But he failed to acknowledge his Nazi past when he was nominated, later on, to be chief editor of WDR television.
Friedrich Von Sell, director general of WDR, said several days ago that there were no grounds to fire Loch. But he admitted to the station’s council of directors that Loch’s membership in Nazi organizations was not given consideration when he was promoted. The council issued a statement that it sought a solution which would avoid damaging WDR while at the same time take into account Loch’s ex-post facto commitment to democracy in the Federal Republic.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
