Mathias Döpfner wants to resign prematurely as President of the Federal Association of Digital Publishers and Newspaper Publishers (BDZV). Döpfner will hand over his office “in an orderly manner to new hands, preferably also to new structures, starting in the fall,” the BDZV announced on Tuesday. The CEO of Axel Springer SE, to which WELT also belongs, asked for understanding of his decision in a personal letter to the members of the association. His term of office at the BDZV actually runs until autumn 2024.
On the one hand, he justified his step with the purchase of the US portal “Politico”, which “requires significantly more time and presence from me in America”. On the other hand, someone who does not stand for a large, international publishing house must step up to the top of the association in order to better represent the interests of small and medium-sized, regional and local publishers.
Döpfner wrote: “In order to better represent the interests of small and medium-sized, regional and local publishers, you need a person or constellation at the top who does not represent a large, international and very digital publishing house.” That has always been the case in the past again led to misunderstandings.
