A Peripheral Movement?
Querdenken in the Critical Public Discourse about the COVID-19 Pandemic
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Abstract
This study analyzes the interplay between the public image and the self-image of the German Querdenken movement during the covid-19 pandemic. First, we reconstruct the public image of Querdenken with data from the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung. Our findings reveal a multifaceted network of critical arguments against the government's public health measures during the crisis. Querdenken remained at the periphery of this newspaper discourse because it was mostly perceived as anti-democratic, particularistic, and irrational. Next, we compare this public image with Querdenken's self-image using the movement's press releases. Our analysis shows that Querdenken's supporters responded to public criticism by counter-labeling their critics as untrustworthy, conspiratorial, and corrupt. Our conclusion finds that due to its highly contentious “anti-science” and “anti-elite” approach, Querdenken failed to produce a positive “resonance” within the public sphere and developed only limited civil power.
Contributor Notes
Thomas Kern is Professor of Sociology at the University of Bremen in Germany. His research interests focus on sociological theory, political sociology, and sociology of religion. Recent publications include “Social Movements” (in Soziologie – Sociology in the German-Speaking World, 2021) and “‘Trust Science!’ Institutional Conditions of Frame Resonance in the United States and Germany,” co-authored with Dahla Opitz (International Journal of Sociology, 2021).
Dahla Opitz is Doctoral Candidate in Sociology at the University of Bremen. Her research interests include sociological theory, political sociology, cultural sociology, and sociology of scientific knowledge. A recent publication is “‘Trust Science!’ Institutional Conditions of Frame Resonance in the United States and Germany,” co-authored with Thomas Kern (International Journal of Sociology, 2021).
Julian Polenz is Doctoral Researcher in Sociology at the University of Bamberg. His research interests include sociological theory, political sociology, sociology of space, and computational social sciences.
Insa Pruisken is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Bremen. Research interests include the sociology of religion, sociological theory, and sociology of science. Important publications are “Was ist ein religiöser Markt?,” co-authored with Thomas Kern (Zeitschrift für Soziologie, 2018) and “Institutional Logics and Critique in German Academic Science” (Historical Social Research, 2017).
Sarah Tell is Doctoral Researcher in Sociology at the University of Bamberg. Her research interests include social movements, political sociology, and computational social sciences.