Berlin, Germany – October 19, 2025 – A new study by Thomas Hestermann, a journalism professor at Macromedia University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg, has revealed troubling insights into how the media in Germany reports on crime, particularly when it involves migrants or people of foreign origin. The study, titled “Crime and Migration: Perception in German Media”, found that the nationality and ethnicity of crime suspects have been disproportionately highlighted since 2007, with foreign suspects being mentioned about three times more often than their actual representation in police statistics.
What Happened
The findings of the 2025 study, which were compiled for Mediendienst Integration, a Berlin-based research service focusing on migration, integration, and asylum, highlight how media coverage has shifted since the 2015 refugee crisis, when one million migrants entered Germany, many fleeing conflicts such as the civil war in Syria.
Hestermann’s team observed a “drastic distortion” in how German media reports on crime and migration, with a marked increase in coverage of crimes allegedly committed by foreign nationals. This shift is particularly pronounced in the portrayal of violent crime, where media outlets have increasingly linked crime with migration, even when the connection is tenuous or irrelevant.
Media’s Influence on Public Perception
Hestermann explained that the way crime is reported influences public opinion, particularly regarding violence and security. He noted that this pattern makes people question who poses a threat and how much danger they are in. Through his study, Hestermann sought to understand how the perception of violence has changed, and how the origins of suspects are portrayed in media.
Using two recent attacks as examples—one in Munich, allegedly involving a young Afghan man who drove into a crowd, and another in Mannheim by a German man—the study demonstrated a glaring disparity in media coverage. Despite both incidents being similar in nature, the Munich attack was heavily covered on public broadcaster ARD, while the Mannheim attack received little to no attention. The study found that the crime involving the foreign suspect was reported twice as much in German media.
Right-Wing Populist Agenda in Media Reporting
Hestermann pointed out that such reporting decisions are often made intuitively, based on editorial bias or the instinct to align with dominant political narratives. However, he noted that these decisions contribute to a pattern that inadvertently aligns with a right-wing populist agenda. This pattern, while sometimes unintentional, can discriminate against migrants by disproportionately portraying them as violent criminals.
Hestermann also dismissed the common critique that left-wing journalists only report positively about migration. He argued that the overall reporting on crime is discriminatory, regardless of editorial orientation. His analysis of media coverage between January and April 2025 found that both Die Welt (a conservative outlet) and taz (a left-leaning paper) reported foreign suspects more often when ethnicity or nationality was a factor in the crime.
“Migrantization” of Crime
Gina Wollinger, a criminologist and sociologist at the University of Applied Sciences for Police and Public Administration, referred to this distortion in reporting as the “migrantization” of crime. She argued that the emphasis on culture and nationality when discussing crimes committed by non-German suspects creates an unfair connection between migration and violence. Wollinger stated that this perception ignores the root causes of crime, such as poverty, lack of prospects, and personal experiences of violence—factors that affect both migrants and non-migrants alike.
Wollinger emphasized that the issue lies not in migration history or nationality but in the socio-economic conditions that foster crime. She suggested that if these factors were considered in reporting, there would be no distinction between people with or without a migration background.
Recommendations for Change
To address the imbalance in reporting, Hestermann proposed greater diversity within editorial teams. He believes that language barriers often hinder accurate reporting on migration issues, and that involving young people from diverse backgrounds in the media would enrich editorial perspectives and lead to more balanced reporting.
By fostering more inclusive editorial practices, Hestermann and Wollinger hope to combat the discriminatory patterns in media coverage of crime and migration, and promote a more nuanced and accurate portrayal of the relationship between crime and migration.
Conclusion
The study by Thomas Hestermann sheds light on the distortion of crime reporting in Germany, showing how media coverage has disproportionately linked foreign suspects to crime, leading to public misconceptions about migration. By addressing these biases and promoting diversity in media, the hope is that more balanced, fact-based reporting can emerge, reducing the harmful impacts of misinformation on public perception.
This story may be updated with more information as it becomes available.
