Overview
- The pie chart on Baden‑Württemberg’s seat distribution showed AfD with 35 seats appearing similar in size to the SPD’s 10, with proportions not matching the labeled figures.
- The faulty graphic aired in the “ZDF heute live” stream multiple times and reappeared in “heute – in Deutschland,” while later broadcasts carried a corrected version.
- ZDF news chief Thomas Heinrich rejected claims of deliberate manipulation and called it an error discovered after broadcast.
- According to ZDF, numbers had to be entered twice for labels and graphics, the software built slices in a fixed order, and the remaining fraction was assigned to the last segment, which was AfD.
- ZDF says it is reviewing controls on graphic production, highlighting a recently announced five‑point program and personnel consequences after an earlier AI‑footage mistake, as surveys show declining trust in public broadcasters, especially among younger viewers.