»@ichbinsophiescholl« on Instagram: Young people can hardly tell the difference between real and »digital« Sophie Scholl

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Actress Luna Wedler as Sophie Scholl

Photo:

Rebecca Rütten / Sommerhaus Film / SWR

The Instagram project »@ichbinsophiescholl« was a hit with the public.

The format of SWR and BR, in which an actress portrayed Sophie Scholl from May 2021 to April 2022, has meanwhile gathered up to 930,000 followers, an icon of resistance against the National Socialist regime: the Munich student fought against the "White Rose" group Nazi tyranny until members were arrested and executed in 1943.

In clips and selfies, the creators of the project recounted Sophie Scholl's last few months from the first person perspective and "in simulated real time".

A selfie of Sophie posing as an influencer - the Instagram project was seen by many as proof that social media could rekindle young people's interest in history.

But now a study by the RWTH Aachen, which is available to SPIEGEL, shows that young people between the ages of 14 and 19 have hardly noticed the social media project.

History didacticist Christian Kuchler interviewed 1,250 schoolchildren in Bavaria, Saarland and North Rhine-Westphalia.

Only 23 percent of them even took notice of the Insta account - although 81 percent of the people surveyed have their own Instagram account.

"The enormous attention that the 'digital Sophie' received did not go down well with children and young people," says Kuchler.

»Only 145 people out of 1250 respondents actually clicked on the channel.

And for most of them, it was just a one-time visit.« The majority had been made aware of this by teachers in school lessons, says Kuchler.

Not all content corresponded to the historical facts

Particularly irritating: According to the study, many of the young followers surveyed thought the “digital Sophie” was the real Sophie Scholl.

This is also due to the fact that they classify Instagram content as particularly credible in the study.

“You can find more facts on Instagram, on Netflix or in the cinema it’s mostly just about entertainment,” is how one student described her impressions.

Among those surveyed who followed »@ichbinsophiescholl«, identification with the account was high.

And therein could lie a problem.

Because the Insta project by SWR and BR was highly controversial.

Critics accused the account makers of historical kitsch or historical clutter.

What is certain is that the content did not always correspond to the historical facts.

Some of Sophie Scholl's quotes are authentic, others are invented.

And anyone who followed the project for months could easily lose sight of the fact that the resistance of the »White Rose« remained the absolute exception in the Nazi community, which was otherwise loyal to Hitler.

"There seems to be almost no need among young people for critical reflection on the content of social media," sums up history didacticist Kuchler.

At the same time, the project accommodates the obviously shorter attention span of many young people.

The followers almost only saw short excerpts.

One participant in the study was pleased because "you don't have to remember too much at once."

Young people want Hitler as an Insta figure

"In the future, history lessons must enable learners even more to deconstruct historical-cultural offers such as ›@ichbinsophiescholl‹," warns Kuchler.

For example, how to check the media representation with the help of historical sources must become an even more important subject in the classroom.

"This would make a significant contribution to the media skills of young people."

Social media will certainly continue to play an important role in conveying historical content.

The young people interviewed by Kuchler were basically open to projects similar to »@ichbinsophiescholl«.

However, the list of historical figures they want should be treated with caution.

When asked which personalities from history they would like to follow on Instagram, they named Anne Frank, Julius Caesar – and Adolf Hitler.