Gerhard Zeiler on ORF leadership
From Renata Schmidtkunz in conversation with media manager and former ORF Director General Gerhard Zeiler · · Bruno Kreisky Forum für internationalen Dialog
“Der Grund, warum der ORF heute in der Situation ist, wie er ist, ist, weil man zwei, zumindestens zwei Generaldirektoren gewählt haben, die genau am in die Kategorie 2 einzuordnen sind. Hauptsächlich, ich bekomme diesen Sessel und hauptsächlich ich behalte ihn. Die hatten beide. Der eine, weil er die intellektuelle Kapazität ermangelte, der andere, weil es ihm egal war, nicht die Maßnahmen gesetzt, die notwendig sind, um den ORF, wie jedes andere Unternehmen in die richtige Richtung zu führen.”
On , Gerhard Zeiler, President of International at Warner Bros Discovery Inc, spoke about ORF leadership during Renata Schmidtkunz in conversation with media manager and former ORF Director General Gerhard Zeiler on Bruno Kreisky Forum für internationalen Dialog.
About Gerhard Zeiler
In a February 2026 interview at the Bruno Kreisky Forum, Gerhard Zeiler discussed the state of the ORF and the role of public service broadcasting. He stated that the ORF's current situation resulted from electing two directors‑general whom he categorized as primarily interested in obtaining and keeping the position, lacking either the intellectual capacity or the will to take necessary measures. Zeiler asserted that public service broadcasting has five core mandates, with independent reporting being primary, and argued that failures in this area stem from management, not journalists. Zeiler also commented on U.S. politics, expressing confidence that American institutions are strong enough to resist what he described as attempts by the Trump administration to restrict free opinion‑forming. He reflected on his political views, stating he had believed an SPÖ‑led government would be better for Austria, citing Bruno Kreisky's combination of justice, security, and performance. Zeiler called the SPÖ's abandonment of the term "performance" to more conservative parties one of its biggest mistakes in the last 15 years.