German journalist Hubert Seipel, who interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin, faces trial in Germany. RIA Novosti writes about this.
This is due to reports that he allegedly received fees from the Russian Federation. The broadcasting company Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), where Seipel previously worked, began conducting a pre-trial check against him due to a conflict of interest.
The organization clarified that the journalist had to inform the production company and NDR about receiving funds from entrepreneur Alexei Mordashov as part of sponsorship agreements. However, Seipel did not do this. The television and radio company believes that this casts doubt on the journalistic independence of the author.
“It is suspected that NDR and therefore its audience were deliberately misled”– quotes the words of representatives of the organization RIA News.
Seipel himself claims that he did receive “support” from Mordashov, but this did not in any way affect the content of the books he wrote about Putin.
Let us recall that German journalist Hubert Seipel is the author of the acclaimed documentary film “I, Putin. Portrait,” as well as the author of a book about Vladimir Putin, which in the Russian edition is called “Putin. The Logic of Power.”
