Der Kampf ums Internet : Gewinnt Meinungsfreiheit oder Zensur?

In his lecture, Professor Ralf Höcker will share his views on the future of freedom of expression, censorship, and traditional and new media. What is his stance on X and Elon Musk? What about Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg? What is "hate speech"? Who should decide what gets deleted? Ralf Höcker will also comment on the new German government's "ban on lying," which he sees as an attack on freedom of expression and a threat to democracy.

After the lecture, there will be a panel discussion with philosopher Professor Norbert Campagna and judge Dr. Manfred Kölsch, moderated by Dr. Tom Weidig, Member of Parliament.

About the speaker:

Professor Ralf Höcker from Cologne is one of Germany's best-known lawyers and specializes in press law. He became known through his books and his RTL show with Andrea Kiewel on errors in legal errors, where he used case law to explain the principles of the rule of law and the rule of law to a broad audience. He has successfully defended many clients, including celebrities such as Jörg Kachelmann, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Heidi Klum, against the arbitrary actions of journalists and publishing houses. He is also a man of clear words, especially  online on Facebook, and speaks eloquently and deeply on many political topics. He has been invited to well-known talk shows such as "Hart aber Fair", Maischberger, and Markus Lanz. Höcker was a long-time CDU member and briefly also press spokesperson for the WerteUnion. He left the CDU in 2020.

Panelists:

Norbert Campagna, Ph.D., teaches at the University of Luxembourg and specializes in political and legal philosophy, as well as sexual ethics. He has published 38 books and is co-editor of the renowned "Staatsverständnisse" series published by Nomos Verlag in Baden-Baden. He also frequently contributes to Luxembourgish newspapers.

Dr. Manfred Kölsch was a judge for 40 years, most recently as presiding judge at the Trier Landgericht. Since his retirement, he has practiced as a lawyer. He is a member of the "Critical Judges and Public Prosecutors" (KRiStA) network. In numerous publications, he has taken a stance on coronavirus policy and the threat to freedom of expression, which he has highlighted, among other things, in the "Berliner Zeitung" and the magazine "Cicero" with the example of the "Digital Services Act" under the title "Freedom of Expression Dies Behind Beautiful Facades."