The ZDF crew was so surprised by the outcome of the elections that they decided to make fun of the issue and posted on its Facebook a picture of a famous Austrian schnitzel, which was in the shape of a Nazi swastika.
"What's wrong with you, dear neighbors? Austrians vote in the same their schnitzel is made: flat and nicely browned," the inscription said.
By Thursday afternoon the post had more than 30,000 likes.
Although the joke might seem a bit too much, it surely was not expected to cause such a harsh reaction. After the post appeared on the social network, a Tyrolean law student and former FPÖ member filed a lawsuit against the TV channel under paragraph 103 of the German Criminal Code "insulting governmental institutions or representatives of another state".
Earlier, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that the problematic paragraph 103 was to be abolished, but the initiative is expected to come into force only in 2018.
