Scapegoat ARD? - Public Service Broadcasting in Crisis. Notes from a former insider

Topic:          ARD - the scapegoat? Public broadcasting in crisis. Comments of a former insider

Speaker:     Prof. Dr. Claus-Erich Boetzkes, Tagesschau spokesman until 2021

Time:           Friday, 16.12.2022, 3:00 p.m.

Place:          TU Ilmenau,Faradaybau, Weimarer Straße 32

Admission:   5 Euro

The once so well-behaved ARD has been in the headlines for months. The constant reproach: money of the fee payers is thrown out the window. Waste, nepotism, salary excesses and obscenely high pensions seem to be the order of the day. Here, 15,000 euros in retirement pay for a former editor-in-chief; there, a now-fired director who flaunted her company car and luxurious office and charged private parties to her station. And an active director who earns more than the German chancellor. Now that money is tight, savings are being made in programming and freelance staff, but management continues to hold itself harmless. ARD's reputation has been severely damaged by such reports.

In his lecture at the TU Ilmenau Citizens' Campus, Prof. Claus-Erich Boetzkes, himself employed until last year as a news anchor at the ARD broadcaster NDR, analyzes the accusations, allows a look behind the scenes of the system and outlines possible reforms. Boetzkes sums up: An institution that is still important for democracy and worth preserving is increasingly losing support, including in politics.

Contact:

Dr. Uwe Geishendorf
Central Institute for Education
+49 3677 69-4675
buergercampus@tu-ilmenau.de