DW launches new English TV channel
June 20, 2015
Monday, June 22, is the big day: Deutsche Welle will take a new step forward with the launch of a 24-hour English-language TV channel.
"Deutsche Welle is well-known, and it is highly regarded for balanced, reliable journalism. We want to sharpen that image. We believe that people are very interested in Germany. The new channel allows us more scope to meet demand for information from Germany," DW Director General Peter Limbourg said.
'Amaze the audience'
By offering hourly news, the new round-the-clock program in English will significantly expand the current information program.
There is a new focus regarding content: "In Africa and Asia, we want to become better and more relevant," said Carsten von Nahmen, head of DW News and Current Affairs.
To that end, DW has also expanded its correspondent network. In addition to studios in Moscow, Brussels and Washington, correspondents will report from Bangkok, Lagos, New Delhi, Nairobi and Cairo as well as other cities.
Europe and North America continue to play a major role, von Nahmen said. However, what's most important is the courage to take risks, he added: "We want to surprise our viewers even more. We want them to say: wow, I never knew that, so once again, it was really worth tuning in to DW."
It's a goal DW hopes to achieve with the help of a newly revamped social media desk and the correspondent network. "Compared to our competitors, we had some catching up to do; in particular, in the social media sector," von Nahmen said.
That is about to change. "We want to single out new topics before other broadcasters do, which we hope will help us score with the viewers." DW editors will be reporting live on trends in social networks around the world.
Twelve-meter video screen
The news studio also has been remodeled and will appear in fresh splendor. DW editor Wade Adams and a core team of a dozen DW editors started building the English-language channel last year.
For the past two months, he has been working on the grand opening show from the news studio in Berlin.
A two-meter-high, 12-meter-long, high-definition video screen that weighs more than a ton is set up at the center of the studio. "It will make our news more interesting and informative," Adams said, adding that he will be relieved when Monday's premiere is over.
It's not likely that he'll have time to celebrate afterwards, either. "That's when we really get started. We'll be broadcasting 24/7," the DW editor said.
Compliments and requirements
Check out "Made for Minds" for Deutsche Welle's brand-new slogan that will be visible on TV, the DW website and the new DW app.
"We want to make it clear that our users are special people," Limbourg emphasized. "It's a compliment for our audience, but it's also a requirement for us and our content."
Deutsche Welle, of course, will continue broadcasting its TV programs in four languages after June 22. Apart from the new English channel, DW offers German programming; Spanish for Latin America; and Arabic, for audiences from Oman to Morocco. All DW viewers can continue to look forward to the latest news and background reports.