American Journalist Living in Germany

    

         First, let me tell you who these people are.  The darling baby is my little boy Quinn, 13 months.  The other photo is of my daughter Larkin who is 14 this month, with me.  And, the last photo is of the Berlin street just outside the ZDF studio.

    Reporter Erik Kirschbaum is a correspondent for Reuters living in Berlin now for many years.  He married a German woman, has two small children, and fully enjoys his life here.  He gave us some insights today into journalism and how Germans view Americans.

    He says Germans are much more interested in politics and news than Americans,  and the average German can name not only primary political leaders, but most of their cabinet members.  The most popular show in Germany is a 15-minute newscast at 8pm on the public station where the anchors read off a paper, no teleprompter, no glitz.  It's just the facts, Al Schottelkotte-style, (former famed Cincinnati anchor).  He thinks this interest is partly because of German history.  They really really want to know what's going on, in detail.

   Kirschbaum says when Germans visit the US they are shocked by our local tv news.  They can't believe it's so light.  

    "They think we're shallow, but they really like how friendly Americans are," says Kirschbaum.  He says Germans are very concerned about the country's image among foreigners, because of German history.  They have an underlying fear of being pariahs of the world because of the Nazi regime.

   He thinks the German work ethic is a bit of a joke.  He says they get lots of vacation, and it's nearly impossible to lose your job.  If a company does go through with firing a worker, the worker gets about 2 years severance pay.  The Germans admire Americans' entrepreneurial spirit and the fact that job loss is taken in stride in the US.  You lose a job, you find another.  In Germany, it's a big crisis.

    There is a strong tradition of German mothers staying home to take care of their children, and most schools let out mid-day.  It's beginning to change a bit to give working women more options.  For example,  the new family minister of Germany just got a law that entitles working women who get pregnant 14 months off with nearly full pay.

    I asked some questions about investigative journalism and he told us that "checkbook" journalism is considered ok in Germany.  For really big stories where a source is risking his/her career, it's accepted that the news organization will pay the source big money.  He gave an example of a German magazine that paid a bank worker 40,000 Euros for exposing insider trading.

   Another surprise is that German politicians here all expect that the journalist will first show them the quotes from the politician that will be used in the story so the politician can "authorize" the quote.  Say basically, yes that's what I said and what I mean.  He said most news organizations accept this practice, and sometimes it really helps the journalist get better information.  If the politician knows he will be able to see the quotes first before their published he or she tends to tell you more.  They know they can always take it back....

    I am definitely missing my favorite people right now...Larkin, Quinn and Greg.  I am thinking about my sister-in-law Kathy Neff in San Diego who is battling back from pancreatic cancer, and I hope you will say a prayer for her as well.

    Now we are off to Brussels to visit the European Union headquarters and NATO.