Before local council elections

Manipulated photo becomes a political bone of contention

Photo manipulated: Pupils received Wuzzler. In the municipal newspaper (left), Florian Weigl and Mayor Ritzner were still laughing side by side into the camera. In the SPÖ party newspaper (right), the ÖVP politician had disappeared.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Marktgemeinde St. Martin-Karlsbach SPÖ St. Martin-Karlsbach)

One and the same photo, but two different views: Shortly before the local council elections, an opposition politician whose photo has been retouched is causing a stir. The head of the town doesn't really want to comment on it.

That's a whole different league," says Florian Weigl. The ÖVP local councillor from St. Martin-Karlsbach in the district of Melk was unceremoniously retouched out of a joint photo with SPÖ mayor Martin Ritzmaier. The procedure is "not new", but surprising in this form. For some time now, attempts have been made to keep the opposition municipal politician as "unpresentable" as possible. Since the relatively close result of the last municipal council election, in which, according to Weigl, only a few votes decided the mayor's seat, "the SPÖ has been trying to get me away from all activities", says Weigl, identifying a tactic behind this.

Role model for community projects
This is also the case today: in the St. Martin-Karlsbach municipal newspaper published on December 10 last year, a photo of primary school pupils in front of a new table soccer table shows Florian Weigl alongside Mayor Martin Ritzmaier. The project is "a successful example of the power of community initiatives" and "a valuable sign of the importance of cohesion in the community", can be read alongside the photo in the community newspaper.

I have already been very professionally retouched out of this photo. That's a whole new league.

Florian Weigl, ÖVP-Gemeinderat

Bild: Marktgemeinde St. Martin-Karlsbach

In the SPÖ party newspaper from December 18, however, the ÖVP politician is suddenly invisible in the same photo. As if by magic. According to Weigl, it has often happened that he is cropped out of photos. However, being completely retouched is new. "I don't want to give any information on this," explains Mayor Ritzmaier when asked about the matter in the Krone newspaper. A graphic designer did it that way, is the short answer of the SPÖ mayor.

Next cause célèbre: energy community
But there is something else that annoys the retouched man: "The mayor's accusations regarding the energy community are not true," says Weigl. According to Ritzner, this was founded by the ÖVP single-handedly and he was only informed about it in May - as can be read in the foreword to the party newspaper. "We spoke to him in March and got the go-ahead," Weigl now wants to take action against this. Nothing was decided without consulting the head of the village.