Anja Wehler-Schöck heads the international politics department of the Tagesspiegel. She has lived in the Middle East, North Africa, the USA and France.
The world is fading. And in the German media. This was the result of a study by the Otto Brenner Foundation at the beginning of 2022, which had examined German foreign reporting over a period of ten years.
The study criticized that less and less space is being given to international issues. And the reporting that takes place concentrates on a few countries, above all the USA.
It can hardly be denied that the German media rarely look far into the distance, but prefer to look inwards. Many countries and regions remain almost invisible.
Nothing takes place in a vacuum
We often look at international developments purely from our perspective. The fact that local voices are also heard is by no means standard.
In times of shrinking budgets we can’t afford extensive foreign reporting, it’s said again and again. But if the last few years have shown one thing, it is that we cannot afford to do without a deeper understanding of what is happening and trends in other countries.
The Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have made us dramatically aware of the global interlocking. Nothing takes place in a vacuum. Developments in one region can have serious consequences for the entire world.
Economic interdependence can hardly be avoided in a globalized world. And at the same time it can take bitter revenge, as we are currently experiencing. Nevertheless, we often give at best a superficial view of the political and social conditions in many countries.
An example: Germany is currently in the process of initiating new partnerships to secure the energy supply. But little can be read in this country about what moves people in Algeria, Senegal or the United Arab Emirates.
We want to change that. With the new format of the Tagesspiegel, we want to stand for continuous and well-founded foreign reporting with a vision. Which also looks at the “blind spots”, and not only when there is a crash there. Which also looks at the positive developments that are taking place in many places despite severe crises.
We have set up a network for this from Tallinn to Tuvalu. Together with our global network of experts and our correspondents, we would like to bring the world home to you every day, in your daily mirror.
I have been working in the news website industry for over 4 years now, first as a reporter and then as an editor. I enjoy writing about politics news and am also an author. I try to cover a lot of different angles when it comes to my articles so that readers can get a well-rounded understanding of the story.
