This German Life

NPR, National Public Radio; our national beacon of free press across the radio waves, known for being uniquely local, is making waves in Germany?

This is Europe we're talking about. A continent caught between the east-west turf war between the UK's BBC and middle eastern powerhouse Al Jazeera dominating the Mediterranean coast and eastern Europe, a land that is only known to Americans as being Soviet. How did NPR make its way into the popular airwaves of Germany?

Considering Berlin's booming economy, the answer is simple: ex-pats. Berlin's flourishing international community, however, can't be purely American. With its central location as the gateway between eastern and western Europe, it would seem that Berlin would be BBC territory, but a 2012 poll conducted by German relocation company OTA-Berlin, found that english speaking Berliners chose NPR as their premier radio news source. NPR had a low popular vote with only 38%, making the majority. BBC didn't even fill in the second place, as Berliners were more inclined to listen to local German stations, over the British news source that has dominated airwaves almost as long as the British empire dominated the rest of the world.

It makes perfect sense that Berliners would cling to local stations. Living in a worldly city like Berlin, the masses want to be kept up on their current events happening in Germany, and radio truly reflects the concerns and opinions of locals, but as an outsider looking in, when I think of Europe, images of the BBC broadcasted in multiple languages and adapted for different demographics takeover my mind. OTA attributes the lack of popularity of the BBC to the retirement of world news anchor, Robin Lustig, as the mark of  the decline of BBC radio news in general.

But where does NPR fit into this equation? NPR is more than just a radio station in Germany. There correspondents and international staff are often quoted in German papers for expert opinions on research or news coverage. The US is cited as a beacon for global research, often using NPR's international division to link American sources to European news. NPR, often a joke of radio stations in America, is making a name for itself overseas. It has even created a German version of NPR to meet demand, maybe they will even create "This German Life" in there quest to globalize free radio.