Guest article by Musk, the head of the department resigns

Shortly before Christmas, Musk wrote on X that only AfD can “save Germany.” In another entry, he insulted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, calling him an “incompetent fool.” This was left in Germany interpreted as meddling in the ongoing election campaign in the country.

“Germany is at a critical juncture – its future teeters on the brink of economic and cultural collapse. As someone who has made significant investments in Germany's industrial and technological landscape, I believe I have the right to speak openly about its political direction,” Musk now wrote on “Welt am Sonntag”.

According to the billionaire, “The Alternative for Germany is the last glimmer of hope for this country.” According to him, portraying AfD as a right-wing extremist party is wrong, considering that the party's leader Alice Weidel has a partner from Sri Lankans. “Does this sound like Hitler to you?” – asked the Tesla boss.

“Welt am Sonntag” did not publish Musk's article separately, but placed it next to the text by Jan Philipp Burgard, who will be the editor-in-chief of the “Welt” group from January. “Musk's diagnosis is correct, but his therapeutic approach that only the AfD can save Germany is fatally wrong,” wrote a representative of the newspaper.

Musk's article led to a dispute in the editorial team, German media report. According to the website of the weekly “Spiegel”, on Friday morning there was a sharp exchange of opinions at the editorial board – well-known members of the editorial team expressed critical opinions.

The head of the opinion department of “Die Welt” and “Welt am Sonntag”, Eva Marie Kogel, wrote on Saturday on X that she resigned.

When asked by the dpa agency about the origins of the article and how to deal with internal criticism, the Axel Springer media group responded with a joint statement by the current editor-in-chief of the “Welt” group, Ulf Poschardt, and his successor Burgard.

In their opinion, “democracy and journalism live on freedom of opinion.” This includes dealing with polarizing positions and their journalistic classification. “This will continue to define the compass of Die Welt in the future. We will develop Die Welt even more decisively as a forum for such debates,” it noted. Musk has economic interests not only in… USAbut also in Germany – reminds the media. In 2022, he opened a large Tesla electric car factory near Berlin.

Early elections to the German Bundestag will be held on February 23.