Strg_F

It is the year 2023 and the climate crisis is felt everywhere. And yet the demolition vehicles are parked in front of Lützerath, a small town on the edge of the gigantic Garzweiler opencast mine. Lützerath is to be cleared so that the energy company RWE can mine the lignite beneath and behind Lützerath. The planned eviction is the result of a deal that the federal government and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia concluded with RWE - a compromise that brought forward the phase-out of brown coal by eight years. But does Germany really need this coal? The study situation is ambiguous. Thousands of climate activists are demonstrating against the demolition these days. They resist the eviction with all their might - in vain. CTRL_F was in the middle for six days. What is the point of this protest?

In 2030 there will be no more homeless people! Across the EU, the goal is to accommodate all homeless people. That sounds like a good plan, which is also included in the coalition agreement. But when you step out the door, the reality looks different. Can the project even be achieved in seven years? We meet people who are being evicted and live on the streets and ask the responsible state secretary what exactly is planned.

Toomaj Salehi is one of the voices of the revolutionary movement in Iran. The rapper has repeatedly sharply criticized and challenged the regime in his songs. He has been on the streets since September, demonstrating for freedom. Today he is in a prison near Isfahan. The accusation is: “War against God”. Toomaj faces execution. A few weeks after his arrest, state television published a recording of his confession. His friends are sure: It must have been forced. Reporter Armin Ghassim meets Toomaj's uncle and his girlfriend Negin in Germany. They talk about resistance and hope. And Armin meets a former Iranian prison guard. He is certain: Toomaj will be tortured day and night. What's happening to him? And what are the chances for the movement in Iran?

⚠️ Warning: This case involves, among other things, drug abuse, bad trips, mental illness and suicide. Please only watch the report if you feel stable enough to do so. The hype surrounding the poison of the Sonoran desert toad Bufo Alvarius is huge: stars like boxing world champion Mike Tyson are crazy about the psychedelic drug and even medicine is interested in the substance that the toad produces in its glands. It is the most powerful hallucinogen in the world and is said to help against depression and other mental illnesses. A multicenter study with 200 treatment-resistant depression patients is now planned, in which the Charité in Berlin is taking part, among others. The CTRL_F reporters Mirco and Jan met US war veterans in Mexico who smoke toad to combat their war trauma. They have visited the nocturnal animal and shed light on the business up to a darknet dealer from Germany.

Disclaimer: This film is about the right-wing extremist attack in Hanau. Not all aspects, details and investigation results can be discussed within this report. There is also currently a committee of inquiry into the terrorist attack in the Hessian state parliament. On February 19, 2020, a 43-year-old man murdered nine young people in Hanau for racist motives. He then killed his mother and himself. Because the perpetrator died, there was never a trial. Many questions remain unanswered to this day. How are the people in Hanau-Kesselstadt doing today, three years after the attack? And how dangerous is the assassin's father, who threatens and insults relatives?

More and more ATMs are being blown up in Germany. In 2022 alone there were almost 500. The perpetrators act unscrupulously - and endanger human lives with massive explosions. The police seem powerless, almost helpless, in the face of this. The banks are apparently not doing everything they can to stop this type of crime. Sebastian Heidelberger and Timo Robben investigated the question of why it is so difficult to stop the perpetrators.

40 years ago, the magazine “Stern” headlined: “Hitler’s diaries discovered.” Adolf Hitler's supposed private notes quickly turned out to be fake. The forger Konrad Kujau and the “Stern” reporter Gerd Heidemann, who defrauded the publisher of millions, had to go to prison. And the false “diaries” ended up in the publisher’s safe. Now a team from STRG_F, together with other NDR journalists, has made the secret diary forgeries readable and intensively researched the case. What is in the fake diaries? And was the scam really just the work of a single crook?

They pose with their big trophies on Instagram and YouTube. Fishing has become really popular again, especially through social media. But what happens to the fish after it is caught is obviously ignored. In the fishing scene, the fish is often put back into the water after the photo is taken - this is called catch and release. And that is forbidden according to the German animal protection law. Actually, it is only allowed to catch fish for “reasonable reasons”. E.g. for consumption. But posing on YouTube with a fat carp is not a reasonable excuse. Nevertheless, it seems to be a common practice. Catch and Release: Why do anglers do it? Does that hurt the fish? And how is this practiced abroad? CTRL_F Reporter Han throws out the research rod and gets a look into the depths of the fishing scene.

TikTok is full of ADHD videos! It seems like hype, numerous influencers report about their ADHD and give tips on how to supposedly self-diagnose yourself. Many people recognize themselves in it, including CTRL_F reporter Kim. And there's one more thing you're increasingly coming across in the ADHD bubble: advertising for nutritional supplements that are supposed to help against ADHD. What's that about it? Reporter Kim meets an ADHD content creator, a woman who is convinced she has ADHD, and a man who developed a drug addiction because of his ADHD. And maybe Kim even has ADHD herself?

Fancy rattan chairs, garden loungers and side tables. Today it is hardly possible to buy wood without seals and certificates. Many of them certify sustainability. They are supposed to assure us that forests that have been cut down grow back quickly and that everything is done ecologically and responsibly. But the wood products sold in our stores as sustainable are causing robbery, displacement, even murder in Indonesia. While indigenous residents of Borneo and Sumatra fear for their habitat and existence, Indonesian logging companies and plantation operators are doing business worldwide - also with the help of German certificates. Reporter Lea Struckmeier traveled to where much of our furniture and paper packaging comes from. From the rainforest of Borneo to the wood plantations of Sumatra.

The public media are diverse, many presenters obviously have diverse characteristics and hardly any program website can do without pictures of people with a migration background. It seems as if the broadcasters are committed to diversity. So far so good, but if you move behind the scenes, you notice something else: On the NDR premises, between the offices where topics are set and program decisions are made, everything suddenly seems much more homogeneous. No trace of visible diversity. STRG_F reporters Lia and Sulai ask the question: Why is it that everything seems so different in front of the camera than behind it? Or is the impression misleading? They try to collect data, talk to apparently diverse presenters but also to journalists who bring special perspectives that you don't notice at first glance. Because diversity is much more than skin color.

⚠ This film is about cosmetic surgery. You will see pictures from the operating room, but also of wounds and complications. _________ The Brazilian Butt Lift or BBL is - if done incorrectly - the most dangerous cosmetic surgery in the world. Whether it is successful depends largely on who is operating. In Germany, every doctor with a license to practice medicine can do this. Simply being a doctor is enough, specialist training in plastic surgery is not a must. Isabel Ströh learns from former patients how much pain the supposedly perfect Insta-butt cost her and how one only escaped death after the operation by chance. How can surgery be made safer? And who has to set the rules for this?

On March 9, 2023, Philipp F. ran amok in Hamburg-Alsterdorf. The perpetrator shot seven people and then himself. The police were quickly on the scene and ended the rampage in a short time. STRG_F reporters Isabell Beer and Han Park make their way to the crime scene that evening - it is the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses in Hamburg-Alsterdorf. There are many unanswered questions: Who did this? And why? How did he get the gun? Who are the Jehovah's Witnesses? And could the rampage have been prevented? The research looks into the world of Jehovah's Witnesses and reveals what happened and asks whether the crime could have been prevented.

⚠️ This film is about brutal police operations and violence. If you feel uncomfortable with this, please do not watch the film alone. Sabine is out with her boyfriend in the evening and is a little drunk when she bumps into a police car that is parked in front of a station. What happens next is now the subject of an investigation. Sabine says that several police officers ran after them and one of the officers beat her severely and insulted her. The officer, in turn, says Sabine attacked him. Word agains word. Complaint against complaint. That's how it often works. We looked at studies and statistics. Accordingly, 2,790 cases of police violence were reported in 2021. The dark field should be much higher. Only two percent resulted in an indictment or a penalty order. However, the majority of reported cases were closed. STRG_F reporters Sebastian and Timo ask themselves, how can that be?

Neo-Nazis are apparently pursuing a new strategy: by appearing on YouTubers who don't actually fit into the racist image of German society, they are trying to gain sympathy in new milieus. The Dortmund neo-Nazi Steven Feldmann appeared several times on non-right-wing channels - as a nice conversation partner. This strategy seems to be stuck. In Dortmund, an alliance has apparently formed between German right-wing extremists and people with a migration history in their families. Young suspected migrants put up right-wing extremist stickers or threaten anti-fascists. How dangerous is this phenomenon? STRG_F goes looking for clues.

It is contained in virtually all foods: salt. Whether on the avocado roll, the egg or just in the pasta water - salt is a great flavor carrier, without salt it's not tasty. But: Salt is also extremely dangerous, and in some cases even fatal. STRG_F reporters Gunnar Krupp and Han Park go to Cologne and snack on a food fair. How much salt is actually okay and when do we have to take care of ourselves?

A refund fraudster comes clean. He buys expensive products on the Internet under fake names and with fake accounts - from Amazon and Co. He buys PCs, laptops, iPads, cell phones and much more. He then returns, for example, an empty box - or a box that contains a cheaper product . He demands the full amount back and resells the products. Returns fraud appears to be a profitable business model for some. Several fraudsters have been caught in recent years, causing millions of dollars in damages. STRG_F reporter Désirée Marie Fehringer asks herself in this film: How does the refund fraud system work, why does it work and what are the scams?

People are smoking more and more weed in Germany. But where does the grass that is smoked here actually come from? STRG_F research shows that most large-scale cannabis shipments no longer come to Germany from Albania or Holland, but from Spain. Why is Spanish grass so popular? And what are the local consequences of the Spanish cannabis boom? STRG_F reporter Jonas Schreijäg investigated these questions in southern Spain and found a tough weed business. For the documentary, he accompanies, among other things, the police who storm the apartment of a German cannabis dealer at dawn and he meets a drug lord in Andalusia who sends tons of hashish to Northern Europe. Everyone we spoke to agreed on one thing: the violence has exploded. Would legalization change everything?

The death of 12-year-old Luise from Freudenberg, the beating of two girls in Erfurt and the humiliation of a 13-year-old from Heide - perpetrated by peers and partly shared on TikTok and Co. It is these cases of brutal violence and bullying that leave many stunned in front of their cell phones and raise the question: Are today's children and young people more violent than before? And what role does social media play in this? The answer is: complicated. We went looking for bullies and those being bullied and in Heide, another town in northern Germany, we came across bullies, doxxing and even more hatred and vigilantism on the internet and in the comment columns.

In this film we tell the story of Luca. We changed his name. Luca is bullied and humiliated by other students for months. He is finally filmed during a fight. The video spreads quickly. With dire consequences.

They trained in martial arts and apparently wanted to kill members of the left-wing scene. Some of the members of the Nazi group “Knockout 51” were not even of legal age. For years, at least 14 members are said to have worked in Eisenach to create a “Nazi neighborhood”. “Knockout 51” terrorized the small town in Thuringia not only with threatening graffiti and stickers, but also with numerous violent crimes. The young people on site in particular felt the terror. The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office has now brought charges against the four main defendants: the accusation is that they founded or belonged to a criminal and terrorist organization. Julian Feldmann, Sebastian Heidelberger and Timo Robben tried to talk to those affected and of course to the suspected members of the Nazi Youth.

His dream was to become a tennis professional, but the path to get there is said to have been accompanied by years of abuse. Maximilian Abel is one of the best young players in the world until he drifts away, becomes addicted to alcohol and drugs and ends up in prison for multiple frauds. Only from prison did he send a letter to the President of the German Tennis Association, making serious allegations against his then coach and DTB Vice President Dirk Hordorff, who is said to have repeatedly touched his naked body over the years under the pretext of... Wanting to examine the young player's muscles. When a team of investigative journalists begins to investigate, it becomes apparent that Abel is apparently not Hordorrf's only victim. Numerous people from the German professional tennis scene claim to have known about Hordorff's abuse of power. 14 players, including two active professionals, said they had experienced something similar to Abel.

The dream machine Germany's Next Top Model has been running continuously for 17 years. Since the first season in 2006, the show - and Heidi Klum in particular - has promised thousands of young women the chance of a global career, a life of fame and fortune. She promises life as a top model. What should the young women do about it? Simply follow the same path as Heidi did at the beginning of the 90s: win a competition. Give everything to achieve everything. For this EPIC, STRG_F asked 100 former GNTM participants and around 50 employees involved in the production of the casting show and spoke to around half of them. Nine of the former GNTM participants now talk about their experiences in front of the camera. Some report a good time, others report excessive demands, pressure, manipulation on set and even death threats after the show. What happens behind the scenes at GNTM? What's left when the show is over?

600 people drown in the ocean - including children. It is one of the worst shipping disasters in the Mediterranean in years. The Greek coast guard was aware of the overloaded fishing vessel around twelve hours before the accident. Together with journalists from the Guardian, the research agency Forensis and "We are Solomon", we reconstructed the events of that day, spoke to survivors and went in search of the coast guard crew members. Did the Coast Guard really do everything it could to save people? Or is she even responsible for the ship sinking?

Luxury private jets, mega-yachts, fat sports cars: the super-rich in Germany are causing climate damage that is many times greater than that of the rest of the population. This is shown by data from the World Inequality Database. If you are rich, you can consume more and with increased consumption, CO2 emissions also increase. We talk to young people whose lifestyle is anything but climate-conscious and who are open about it. 18-year-old Theo Stratmann is of the opinion that if you do more, you can also use more CO2. Climate change can no longer be stopped anyway. A mindset that many people seem to share, as there are more private jets flying in Germany today than ever before. In addition, many wealthy people also have an influence on CO2 consumption because they invest in companies, hold shares or sit on boards. Volkswagen provides an impressive example.

The “Healy” is advertised as a miracle cure. Worn on the body, it is intended to “harmonize the bioenergetic field”. It is said to help with chronic pain, migraines, sleep disorders and depression and much more. But the small plastic device is not cheap. Depending on the equipment, it costs between 500 and 4,000 euros. The “Healy” is one of many alternative medical products and techniques that are celebrated in the esoteric scene. Gunnar and LIv dive into this scene for STRG_F, test the Healy and come across a sophisticated multi-level marketing system that ultimately serves one person above all else: the colorful inventor of the plastic part.

Metalheads look evil, but are really sweet. There is widespread agreement on this in the metal community. But is this self-image really true? We went to three metal festivals in Germany. There we talked to metal fans, looked at the line-ups and took a closer look at the merch. Not everything makes the metal heart beat faster. Some metalheads have told us about sexual assaults while crowd surfing. How do festivals deal with this? We asked Wacken, Party.San and Summer Breeze.

Cell phones are prohibited in closed prisons. Nevertheless, there are countless videos from German prisons on TikTok. Some prisoners reach an audience of millions from their cells and don't even make an effort to hide their identity. And at the same time, the authorities seem to have little knowledge of the problem. How can that be? For STRG_F, Lorenz delves into the parallel world of prison. He meets people who have been imprisoned themselves, people who have smuggled cell phones into prison for imprisoned friends, and prison employees who confirm that smuggling into prison is omnipresent.

This research begins with several emails: three women point us to the “ChampLife” network. This should systematically exploit women. The online community website promises potential members more self-discipline and success with women and in business through coaching. The founders show off their supposed wealth. The message: Become part of the community and you can make it. The only question that remains open is how exactly this works. Together with the Y collective, Isabel Ströh and Timo Robben from STRG_F looked at the network: They gained access to closed Telegram groups, evaluated hundreds of chat messages, spoke to suspected perpetrators and those affected in order to answer the question: How does it work? the “Champlife” system?

We made a film about metal festivals. And also faced headwinds. Some liked that we addressed problems in their scene. Others said we were trashing the whole scene. The YouTuber “The Dark Parable Knight” (Alexander Prinz) thinks we have failed catastrophically and are being manipulative. But, is this really the truth? In this reaction video we address a few points and also give the topic more space. We conducted new interviews about the scene, NSBM bands and attacks on metal festivals.

⚠️ This film is about serious drug abuse, death and addiction. If you feel uncomfortable with this, please do not watch the film alone. Painkiller and death drug - Fentanyl is currently flooding the USA. In 2021, more than 70,000 people died from an overdose. CTRL_F reporter Milan Panek is in the USA on business and is heading to Portland - where fentanyl dominates the streets. Portland has a special feature - there is no longer a prison sentence for the use of heroin, cocaine and fentanyl, but rather a fine. You can go to prison just for trafficking. What is fentanyl doing to the city and how did the crisis escalate to such an extent? Milan accompanies people whose everyday lives are shaped by drugs and meets those who want to escape it. While Milan is traveling in Portland, Marlene, Irem and Jonas are doing research in Germany. A Fentanyl Crisis: Can It Happen Here Too?

Suddenly the solution seems so simple: Ozempic, an injection that can help you lose weight. It is apparently making celebrities like Elon Musk and the Kardashians thin and making the manufacturer Novo Nordisk the most valuable company in Europe. The hype on TikTok, Instagram and in the media is huge. The black market is booming. And this despite the fact that Ozempic is not intended for weight loss, but for people with diabetes. What does the boom mean for you? And how is the shady business going with Ozempic and the official weight loss injection Wegovy? Nadia and Lorenz from STRG_F talk to patients and check the black market.

Reich citizens reject the state and often stand side by side with Nazis. Members of the scene repeatedly attract attention with anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. It sounds crazy that Reich citizens, of all people, are founding so-called “Jewish communities”. We looked through association registers, visited community centers and knocked on doors. Finally we were able to speak to an alleged chief rabbi from the Reichsbürger scene. Why do the Reich citizens do this?

Harvest time in Schleswig-Holstein! To this day, the good German cabbage is picked from the field by hand. Hard work, little money. We Germans can hardly be motivated to do this anymore. But for Romanian migrant workers the harvest is worth it, the minimum wage in their own country is only €3.10, here in Germany it has just risen to €12. Seasonal workers have been coming to the mini-town of Wesselburen since the 1990s. Formerly from Poland, now from Romania. The fact that Romanian families are settling there - becoming fellow citizens - leads to resentment. How is living together? We get to know the place and its residents.

Experiencing abroad not just like on vacation, going to school like in American films - spending a year abroad as a student is a big dream for many people. A dream that usually requires a five-figure payment to be fulfilled. In this research, three former exchange students tell how their dream of a year abroad turned into a nightmare: through living in dirty apartments, with armed host parents and psychological pressure from people they actually trusted. These stories are exemplary of many cases in our research that can be traced back to the same structural deficiencies in the organization of such stays. What are they and who is responsible for them? What goes wrong during your year abroad?

More Nutrition - a nutritional supplement manufacturer from Elmshorn in Northern Germany. They sell colorful protein shakes, sugar substitute powders and capsules that promise that you can use them to keep fit, be healthy and productive. More Nutrition sees itself not only as one of Germany's leading supplement manufacturers, but also as a large family. But the multi-million dollar company is being criticized. Not only because of possible health risks caused by the products and their presumably inadmissible health claims - people who publicly criticized the company or its founder Christian Wolf report threatening situations. How honest is the More family? What remains of their promises? STRG_F reporters Desiree Marie Fehringer and Sebastian Heidelberger are researching together with ZDF Magazine Royale.

Alice and Kevin report stomach pains before class. Gülsah talks about sleep disorders. And Lucie says: “I’m just scared.” For this film, STRG_F launched a call for ideas about schools. We asked how you are doing with school. Have you ever had the feeling that school is making you sick? We received many letters. There seems to be a great need to talk. That's why this CTRL_F belongs to students, school dropouts and high school graduates. Does school actually make you sick? What is wrong with school? And what would have to change?

The hype around Ozempic doesn't stop. The syringe with which you can simply lose weight is too tempting. Actually, Ozempic is not a weight loss injection at all, but a medication for diabetics. Nevertheless, demand is huge and crooked business is booming. Nadia and Lorenz from STRG_F continue to research with NDR, WDR and Süddeutsche Zeitung. You meet a woman who was in the emergency room because of fake Ozempic. She even got it from a doctor. How could that happen? And where do the fake weight loss injections come from?

Two people in the middle of war: the German-Israeli Yarden and the German-Palestinian Abed. We have been following the fates on both sides of the border since the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7th and the beginning of Israel's counterattacks. The Romann family, who have been fearing for the life of the kidnapped 35-year-old Yarden for weeks. And 27-year-old Berliner Abed, who actually just wanted to visit his family in Gaza. He films himself how the rockets hit in the immediate vicinity and is unable to leave the country for weeks. At the same time, the Romann family is fighting for Yarden's release.

The Internet is the biggest restaurant in the world. And people eat spicy food there all the time. From wasabi to hot sauce to the hottest chili varieties in the world. After STRG_F reporter Han has eaten his way through sweet and salty foods in the past, this time he wants to know how much spicy food he can handle. So he tries hot sausages, visits a chili farmer, speaks to a hotness influencer and finally tests the “Hot Chip” under medical supervision. This is a tortilla chip seasoned with the powder of the hottest chili varieties in the world. Young people have already ended up in the hospital after consuming it. German authorities warn against consumption. Now the manufacturer has stopped exports. What does the sharpness do to Han's body? And when is spicy dangerous?

We published research on the dietary supplement brand More Nutrition on November 10, 2023. A prominent advertising face of the brand: the YouTuber Rezo. That's why we talked briefly about his role in our film - and therefore sent him three questions beforehand. The circumstances of this request led to some disagreements between us and Rezo, who died on December 2nd. Made a video about it in 2023. With harsh accusations against STRG_F and our way of working. In this video we attempt to address some of these allegations.

2.2 million children and young people in Germany are affected by poverty. According to a current UNICEF study, Germany is behind countries such as Poland and Slovenia. We meet young people who grew up in poverty and are still fighting to be able to lead a self-determined life. What does it do to a person to grow up without financial means and why has child poverty not been effectively combated in Germany so far?