14 Journalists from Germany on deep dive in USA before midterm elections
Fourteen radio and television journalists from Germany got their three-week long #RIASBerlin Commission fellowship in the United States off to a flying start with a packed program in Washington DC.
The reporters and producers from across Germany had the chance to ask Charlie Dent, a Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, why he recently left politics after years of wrangling with President Trump and learn more about power politics, negative election campaigns every two years, and transatlantic relations.
The Germany-based journalists also learned that from a senior litigator at the ACLU that it will fight for constitutional rights and free speech for everyone— even the KKK. There were also riveting briefings at the PEW Institute that showed there is a wide disconnect between German and American public opinion on many issues.
RIAS alumni Stacey Samuel of NPR gave the fellows several eye-opening briefings at NPR on the political sentiment and racism issues in the United States.
The chair of the Democratic Party in Maryland offered insights into the bruising midterm election campaign at her grassroots headquarters in Maryland while Ralph Dannheisser later told the group why he reclaimed his German citizenship nearly 80 years after he and his family fled Nazi Germany. The fellows also learned more about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The week in Washington was also highlighted with a get-together with 30 American alumni and, as is often the case with broadcast journalists, they were quickly chatting with each other as if they knew each their whole lives.
On Saturday evening the group went to a campaign rally at the University of Maryland to see Democratic challenger Ben Jealous make his case to win governor’s office in November.
Here is a list of the journalists from Germany:
- Christopher Wittich, NTV
- Nina Lammers, RTL
- Patricia Adenauer-von Berg, RTL
- Matthias Bähr, Reuters Television
- Catherine Martens, Deutsche Welle
- Martin Richter, Phoenix
- Daniel Pokraka, BR radio
- Peter Schubert, MDR
- Christine Langer, SWR
- Frank Hoffmann, Deutsche Welle
- Nina Behlendorf, ZDF
- Miriam Steimer, ZDF
- Steffi Orbach, WDR/Deutschlandfunk
- Meggin Leigh, Deutsche Welle
