The claim
A viral image shows various quotes that allegedly come from Björn Höcke, the parliamentary group leader of the AfD Thuringia. It is suggested that he emphasizes his intellectual superiority over the “simple but very warm-hearted Thuringians” and that the Thuringians enviously recognize his intellectual superiority.
Our conclusion
The Björn Höcke quotes examined were largely classified as unconfirmed or even invented. Only one of the quotes could be verified; it comes from a summer interview. The other quotes were not found anywhere.
A viral image with multiple quotes and a nationwide outcry, but what's really behind it? It's about this sharepic by Björn Höcke with the following quotes:

The quotes verbatim:
“I love Thuringia and feel at home in all of Thuringia.”
„The people of Thuringia welcomed me so warmly when I moved to this beautiful state from the west.”
„As a West German, I could and can use my intellectual advantage over the mostly simple but very warm-hearted Thuringians for the benefit of the country, without having to fight permanent power struggles with my voters and my Thuringian party friends, because in Thuringia the intellectual superiority of an individual is recognized without envy, if it is for the benefit of an entire federal state and an entire region.”
Viral fodder for the masses
A picture. Lots of quotes. One click. The recipe for viral hits on the Internet is often surprisingly simple. In the case of Björn Höcke, the AfD parliamentary group leader in Thuringia, his alleged statements have led to controversial discussions and heated debates. But as so often the question arises: What is reality and what is fiction?
Need for clarification: This is what the facts say
It is not the first time that a prominent politician has been attacked on the Internet (Opens in new window) . But the lack of any sources or other evidence for these particular quotes should make any critical mind suspicious. There are no such statements from Höcke in public appearances or official announcements.
The exception is the first sentence on the sharepic with “I love Thuringia and feel comfortable in all of Thuringia.” This sentence came from the summer 2023 interview with Björn Höcke (AfD) | MDR THURINGIA | MDR from August 9, 2023.
The exact wording is “I love Thuringia, I love the people in Thuringia, I travel in Thuringia day in and day out!”
Can be heard from minute 22:12
We watched and listened to the entire summer interview and couldn't recognize any of the quotes other than that one sentence.
The other quotes are nowhere to be found and yet, despite a lack of evidence, they have found their way into the digital cosmos, where they have been shared, commented on and discussed thousands of times. Although there is no concrete evidence to support these quotes, this incident clearly shows how quickly information (or disinformation) can spread in the digital age. A picture, a few lines of text and a supposed truth is born.
FACT CHECK Björn Höcke quotes:
IN DIFFERENT WORDS, BUT SENSE TRUE: “I love Thuringia and feel at home in all of Thuringia.”
WRONG/NOT FOUND: “ The Thuringians welcomed me so warmly when I moved to this beautiful federal state from the west.”
WRONG/NOT FOUND: “ As a West German, I could and can use my intellectual advantage over the mostly simple but very warm-hearted Thuringians for the benefit of the country, without having to fight permanent power struggles with my voters and my Thuringian party friends, because in Thuringia the intellectual The superiority of an individual is recognized without envy if it is for the benefit of an entire federal state and an entire region.”
Note: If anyone has a source for these quotes, please send it to us using our reporting form: https://www.mimikama.org/meldeformular/ (Opens in new window)
Conclusion
The story about Björn Höcke's made-up quotes shows once again how important critical media literacy is in today's society. Before we hit share or join an opinion, we should always do our homework and check the facts. This is the only way we can protect ourselves from misinformation and form a well-founded, objective opinion.
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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )

