RIAS exchange programs resume with three in the fall programs

The RIAS Berlin Commission will emerge from its involuntary COVID-19 induced hibernation with three exchange programs for about 55 participants over the next eight weeks — two one-week long alumni programs for about 46 participants and one standard three-week program for nine participants.

Despite the difficult and changing situations in the United States and Germany as the pandemic gradually wanes, the RIAS Berlin Commission has selected German and American participants for the three upcoming programs and will attempt to carry out the programs as best and creatively as possible. The outlook for a reopening of newsrooms and nations appeared brighter in June before the Delta variant threw a spanner into the works.

In particular it was the continued travel restrictions preventing most EU Schengen-area citizens from traveling to the USA that has made organising the trips difficult. There were hopes that the restrictions would have been lifted after the EU lifted its restrictions on USA travelers to Europe in June. But the USA’s restrictions remain in place. Fortunately RIAS Berlin Commission journalists were able to obtain exception visas for the programs.

Because many newsrooms are still closed to their own staff members as well as visitors, some of the meetings will be held at unconventional locations. RIAS alumni chapter leaders in Cologne and New York. Martin Richter of Phoenix TV in Bonn and Michael Gargiulo of WNBC in New York, have helped enormously in selecting and coordinating the two alumni groups.

Here is a short overview of our three upcoming programs:

September 20-27: 16 American journalists will be coming to Berlin for a one-week alumni program timed to coincide with the German elections. Many of them will be reporting on the German elections to their stations back home. There will have an alumni get-together with German and US alumni on Friday evening, September 24. All alumni are invited to join. Please write to info@darkseagreen-dog-940501.hostingersite.com for details.

October 11-29: 9 German journalists will be in Washington DC (one week), New York City (one week) and in the third week at a small station in the South, Midwest or West for the standard three-week program. The group will take a closer look at important mayoral and gubernatorial elections in New York City and New Jersey.

October 24-30: 30 German journalists and RIAS alumni from across the country will be in New York for one week, taking a closer look at the New York and New Jersey elections as well as New York City’s recovery from the pandemic.

Here are the USA participants for Sept 20-27 Berlin program:

Michael Gargiulo, Anchor WNBC TV, New York

Lane Luckie, Anchor, KLTV, Tyler, Texas

Karen Caifa, reporter CNN, Washington DC

Maggie Kerkman, producer, Fox News, Dallas, Texas

TJ Speicher, producer Fox News, New York

Bonnie North, reporter/anchor North Country Public Radio, Canton, Potsdam New York

Bryan Weakland, producer MSNBC, New York

Tiffany Zeno, producer WNBC, New York

Susan Valot, reporter public radio stations in California

Bob Jamieson, NBC News, New York

Justin Campbell, reporter, WKMG News, Orlando, Florida

Michael Makowski, The Progressive Magazine, Madison, Wisconsin

Larry Levin, Irish Echo, Dublin, Ireland

Jeremy Chen, KTNV Las Vegas

Debbie Block, Voice of America, Washington DC

Miranda Dotson Reed, former KGO TV/ABC7 News, San Francisco, California

Here are the German participants for the October 11-29 program in the USA

Lena Mosel, Welt TV Berlin

Dilek Üsük, RBB Abendschau/WDR news, Berlin

Annette Yang, NDR, Hamburg

Kristian Wiegand, Phoenix, Bonn

Jan Fritsche, ZDF, Magdeburg/Berlin

Julia Grünwald, MDR, Leipzig

Dania Maria Hohn, RTL/NTV Hamburg

Frauke Holzmeier, RTL/NTV Cologne

Kate Brady, Deutsche Welle, Berlin

Here are the German participants for the October 24-30 program in New York

Martin Richter, Phoenix, Bonn

Michail Paweletz, NDR Hamburg

Vladimir Balzer, Deutschlandradio, Berlin

Mitri Sirin, ZDF, Berlin

Anja Heyde, ZDF, Berlin

Anna Maria Schuck, ZDF, Mainz

Mirja Fielder, NDR, Hamburg

Andre Schünke, NDR, Hamburg

Anja Martini, ARD, Hamburg

Anne Sieger, ARD, Cologne

Björn Heckmann, RTL, Cologne

Cornelia Gerhard, Phoenix, Bonn

Guido Meyer, Deutschlandfunk, Bonn

Iris Ollech, Phoenix, Bonn

Kerstin Ruskowski, Deutschlandfunk Nova/WDR, Cologne

Lydia Leipert, BR, Munich

Marc Krueger, podcast freelancer, Berlin

Maren Hellwege-Beck, BR, Munich

Nina Hansen, ARD, Hamburg

Petra Gute, RBB, Berlin

Philipp Eins, freelance radio/podcast, Berlin

Sabine Krebs, ARD, Nairobi, Kenya

Steffi Clodius, ARD, Hamburg

Susan Falkenstein, BR radio, Munich

Zlatin Nikov, SR, Saarbrücken

Boris Baumholt, WDR, Duesseldorf

Bartosz Dudek, Deutsche Welle radio, Bonn

Marius Zekri, NDR radio, Hamburg

Michael Meyer, Deutschlandfunk, Berlin

Micha Wagenbach, ZDF, Berlin

Oliver Sallet, Deutsche Welle, Washington DC