Peter Thiel Snags Top Prize from Politico’s Owner

Axel Springer, the German company that owns Politico and Business Insider, has awarded its top prize to ... Antichrist lecturer Peter Thiel.

The Axel Springer Award—previously bestowed on Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman—will go to the Palantir billionaire at a ceremony in Berlin on September 24. CBS News boss Bari Weiss will deliver laudatory remarks.

CEO Mathias Döpfner extolled Thiel’s “courage and non-conformity,” and the press release states that Thiel has “shaped the public debate on innovation, freedom, and the future of Western societies.”

But Thiel is literally the guy who said: “I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible.” He also famously hates journalism.

The announcement left out another important fact: Thiel reportedly made a $50 million investment in a new venture capital fund started by the son of Mathias Döpfner, Axel Springer's co-owner and CEO. The son, Moritz, is known as—get this—the “German JD Vance.” Moritz previously worked as chief of staff at Thiel Capital.

This is a glaring and unethical omission. How did no one at a newspaper company think to mention this obvious conflict? (Critics also noted that Axel Springer used a flattering, decades-old photo of Thiel that makes the mortality-phobic billionaire look fresh and young.)

Last year, I wrote about Politico’s $50 million Thiel problem. Perhaps it explains why that outlet has been so oblivious—or nonchalant—about tech fascism. Politico’s coverage of Thiel and his gang, who are a major force inside the Trump administration, has been woefully inadequate. The radical politics of Silicon Valley are lightly mentioned, a background noise, even as their most bizarre ideas are put into practice.

What does Thiel’s little quip about freedom and democracy mean in practice? Well, when you see Trump violating the law and the Constitution, raking billions of dollars into his family coffers through open corruption, sending law enforcement after journalists, and threatening to derail the midterm elections ... this is the wonderful reality Thiel and his ilk have imposed on us.

No mention of that from the Axel Springer CEO whose son is raking in millions from the man daddy’s company just gave its biggest honor.

Don’t get me wrong—there are great reporters at Politico who do great work. I know some of them personally. But this tight relationship with Thiel, a major collaborator of Trump whose companies are receiving billions from the Trump regime, is a massive credibility issue for the publication.

In Germany, the reaction was swift.

“The German Journalists’ Association (DJV) criticized the decision, stating it was incompatible with the values of the Springer publishing group,” reported Deutschlandfunk. “DJV chairman Beuster declared that Thiel was the figurehead of libertarian movements in the US, who trampled on democratic principles and the social market economy.”

Springer, for its part, says the award is a statement for “freedom of expression and an open culture of debate.” That’s rich. Thiel secretly bankrolled the Hulk Hogan lawsuit that bankrupted Gawker in 2016—a covert, years-long legal campaign designed to destroy a media outlet that displeased him.

And Thiel isn’t done. This spring, he funded a new startup called Objection, founded by Aron D’Souza, the lawyer who orchestrated the Gawker strategy. For a starting fee of about $2,000, the rich and aggrieved can pay to put a journalist’s work on trial before an “AI jury,” which then issues a verdict and assigns the reporter an “Honor Index” score.

A private, billionaire-funded tribunal that uses AI to attack journalists. Is this Axel Springer’s definition of free speech and open debate?

Here’s an idea for a media company: don’t give your top prize to a billionaire who bankrupted one media outlet and is funding a machine to harass the rest. Seems easy enough.

Axel Springer journalists with ethics and integrity should head for the nearest exit.

Peter Thiel and his dangerous tech cult of power are the subject of my book, The Nerd Reich: Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy. Something tells me you won’t be hearing about it in Politico! Coming 8/18. Pre-order here.