Who profits from exaggerating Merz's failure? Checking FIMI/DIMI

On May 12, 2025, a video with the sharp headline: “Merz loses Germans’ trust! What’s happening in Germany?” was posted on the CTVBY YouTube channel. This video gathered more than 300 thousand views.

With the following content:

New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s coalition starts with a record low popularity. Despite the fact that he has only been chancellor for four days, the majority of Germans are already dissatisfied with his work. According to sociological survey data for German media, only 23% of respondents positively evaluate the new chancellor’s actions. For comparison, even Olaf Scholz, two days after being elected head of the Cabinet in 2021, had almost 20% more citizen support than Friedrich Merz. However, the skepticism concerns not only Merz himself but his entire coalition. Thus, only 29% of respondents are satisfied with its initiatives, while almost half are not. In this regard, experts suggest that to raise ratings, Merz needs to urgently resolve issues of illegal migration and lift the German economy from its knees. So far, he’s only feeding his citizens with loud statements.

Our verdict based on the analyses conducted:

Verdict: Mostly correct

Reasons:

• Only a few aspects that are not essential to the argumentation are incorrect or omitted.
• The inaccuracies or incorrect aspects do not affect the correctness of the main thesis.

Fact-checking rating scale

Full video:

Analysis for FIMI/DIMI

1. Manipulative headline:

• The headline “Merz loses Germans’ trust!” is sensational in nature and can be misleading, exaggerating the degree of citizens’ dissatisfaction.

2. Emotionally charged expressions:

• Phrases like “starts with a record low popularity” and “feeding his citizens with loud statements” give the text a negative emotional tone, which can enhance the perception of criticism.

3. Comparison with previous leaders:

• The comparison with Olaf Scholz may be used to enhance the negative perception of Merz, although the context and circumstances of their taking office are different.

4. Generalizations and assumptions:

• The statement that “the majority of Germans are already dissatisfied with his work” may be a generalization if not supported by specific survey data.

✅ Fact-checking

1. Friedrich Merz’s support level:

• According to a survey by the Forsa institute conducted in May 2025, Friedrich Merz’s approval rating is around 20%.

2. Comparison with Olaf Scholz:

• After taking office in December 2021, Olaf Scholz had an approval rating of about 45%, which is indeed higher than Merz’s current ratings.

3. Coalition assessment:

• The data about 29% satisfaction with coalition initiatives corresponds to survey results indicating citizens’ skepticism toward the new coalition.

4. Economic and migration challenges:

• Issues of illegal migration and economic growth are indeed relevant for Germany, and their resolution is considered a priority for strengthening the government’s position.

Publication with sociological survey results:

Let’s analyze the disinformation narratives and perform a semantic analysis: