CNN 'Journalist of The Year' Fabricated Anti-Trump Stories, Pushed Pro-Refugee Propaganda

The German magazine Der Spiegel revealed that one of its top award-winning journalists fabricated many of his articles, inventing characters, sources, and their quotes 'on a grand scale' for many years.

The German magazine Der Spiegel revealed Wednesday that one of its top award-winning journalists fabricated many of his articles, inventing characters, sources, and their quotes “on a grand scale” for many years.

Claas Relotius, a reporter and editor, admitted to fabricating parts of at least 14 stories following the magazine’s internal investigation. The publication said the issue “marks a low point in the 70-year history of Der Spiegel.”

“I am sick and I need to get help,” he reportedly told the magazine.

The reporter contributed around 60 articles to Der Spiegel, one of the leading German magazines for investigative reporting. He previously worked for other publications in Europe and won awards such as CNN Journalist of the Year in 2014.

One of the stories that brought Relotius down was the one he wrote about residents of Fergus Falls, Minnesota, a town that overwhelmingly voted for President Donald Trump in the 2016 election.

Spiegel wrote that it was in March 2017 when an article headlined 'In a Small Town,' a snapshot of Fergus Falls, Minnesota, appeared in Der Spiegel.

According to the news outlet, 'the plan was for Relotius to rent an apartment in Fergus Falls, meet people, listen to what they had to say, and produce a snapshot that would allow readers to gain a slightly better understanding of the Americans'.

However, like many reporters, Relotius realized he didn't have a story.

'DER SPIEGEL gives its reporters a very free hand in situations like these. No staff member -- especially not one that had published the kind of stories Relotius had -- has to worry about getting into hot water for failing to bring home a story,' the magazine said.

The magazine said that Relotius 'simply refused to accept those realities' and wrote a tall tale about Fergus Falls.

Relotius lied about seeing a hand-painted welcome sign that read 'Mexicans Keep Out', that he claimed was sitting at the edge of the town.

But the sign didn't exist and never had.

'He passed on his creation as fact to hundreds of thousands of readers -- and insulted the inhabitants of Fergus Falls in the process,' Spiegel said.

'Relotius gave the inhabitants of Fergus Falls made-up biographies to suit his needs, as if he were a puppeteer.

'He invented grotesque lies and reported, for example, that the students at the John F. Kennedy high school drew their role models for the American dream as follows: "They did not draw a single picture of a woman," Relotius wrote. "One class drew Barack Obama, two drew John D. Rockefeller. Most of them drew Donald Trump."'

According to the magazine, it was all 'pure fiction. Every single bit is concocted bunk'.

AntiCNNites are spreading antiCNNism. pic.twitter.com/WFXndJ5C4H

— Chris Menahan 🔹 (@infolibnews) December 21, 2018