Overview
- ZDF management late last week barred Danger Dan and Igor Levit from performing their new song “Keine Angst” on Die Anstalt, saying the lyrics could be read as instructions for extralegal, violent action and violate the broadcaster’s programme rules.
- Danger Dan and pianist Igor Levit responded by staging a replacement concert in Berlin on Tuesday that played the contested song live, drew about 800 people in the hall and thousands online, and pledged ticket proceeds to Opferperspektive, a support group for victims of right‑wing violence.
- Eight members of the ZDF‑Fernsehrat published an open letter condemning the timing and handling of the cancellation and saying the text should have been discussed in editorial context, while ZDF‑Intendant Norbert Himmler and Fernsehrat chair Gerda Hasselfeldt defended the substantive ban but admitted procedural mistakes.
- Critics point to lyrics that urge organisation and confrontation and include greetings to figures linked to the Antifa‑Ost prosecutions, passages ZDF’s legal team cited as evidence the song could normalise or instruct militant action.
- The case will be examined by ZDF’s oversight bodies and discussed at the full Fernsehrat meeting on September 25, a review that could change how public broadcasters assess politically charged art and that raises questions about editorial timing, legal risk and the impact on victims of right‑wing violence.