RIAS Berlin Kommission

🎙 We are searching for our next Executive Director 🌐 🎤 Job Highlights:   •  lead a team of three in planning, implementation, and development of exchange programs for German and American journalists to the United States and Germany   •  Responsible for organizing a RIAS Berlin Commission media award and its annual award ceremony   •  an interest in expanding the growing alumni network, as well as deepening outreach to station hosts and program speakers 🗓️Apply by Friday, August 9 📧 Please submit your completed application forms and required materials in one PDF to info@riasberlin.org and apply@riasberlin.org Don't miss this incredible opportunity to broaden your horizons, build international connections, and contribute to the legacy of RIAS. Apply now and embark on a transformative journey! 🎥🌐

Anne Williams welcomed fellow RIAS Commissioner, Coordinator of Transatlantic Cooperation, Michael Link, to Chicago, along with his chief of staff. Dr. Fabrizio Micalizzi. Great discussions on strengthening the RIAS program and longstanding ties between our two countries, and continuing to build on important dialogue between the US and Germany.

Our RIAS Atlanta chapter met last night to celebrate all things RIAS! Our members heard from RIAS alum Caroline Baxendale who recently returned from her RIAS fellowship and from RIAS alum Faith Jessie who is headed to Paris soon to cover the Olympic Games. Thank you to Katherine Dorsett Bennett, John Branch, Ward "Chucky" Colin, Fenly Foxen, Marilyn Geewax and Jim R. for joining! If you’re in the Atlanta area and interested in joining the chapter, please email: chapteratlanta@riasberlin.org

A rare moment in time, worthy of a photo and caption encompassing our deepest gratitude and respect for these three outstanding individuals outside the RIAS building in Berlin this June. From left to right, Erik Kirschbaum, the former Executive Director of RIAS from 2016 through 2024. Erik's passion for RIAS is his greatest gift. He launched the RIAS alumni and student programs, and we are so appreciative of his hard work and dedication. In the middle, Erik's successor, Interim Executive Director Christoph Jumpelt, who just took over the reins and has jumped right in to pick up where Erik left off. On the right, Rainer Hasters; the inaugural RIAS Executive Director who started the program back in 1992. Rainer worked tirelessly for RIAS and thousands of German and American journalists until he retired in 2016. Rainer crafted the standard RIAS programs. And anyone who met Rainer knows his dedication and commitment to truth and democracy is the best example of the German-American collaboration to maintain journalistic integrity and the transatlantic tradition of the RIAS name and programs. These men have touched the lives of thousands of storytellers dating back to 1992 to the present.

Congratulations to RIAS alum Sheryl Worsley for being installed as Chair of the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA)! We are excited for your upcoming term!

Congratulations to the outstanding winners of the 2024 RIAS Media Prize! 🏆 Last week we celebrated our winners in Berlin. During the ceremony we honored our previous executive director, Erik Kirschbaum for his 8 years of service to RIAS. Thank you to The Swingin’ Hermlins for their music and our alumni for joining! 

Thank you Michael Naumann and MDR MITTELDEUTSCHER RUNDFUNK for hosting us today! We enjoyed our insightful exchange of ideas and look forward to further exchanges in the future!

🎉 Congratulations to the eight journalists chosen to participate in the RIAS Berlin Commission program this summer! The group will spend two weeks in Berlin, Cologne and Brussels. The participants include: Wilton C. Jackson II, Jackson State University, Jackson, Mississippi  Erica Alyssa Hernandez, CNN, Atlanta, Georgia Rachael Myrow, KQED, San Francisco, California Cooper Seamer, Dakota News Now, Sioux Falls, South Dakota Lakshmi Sarah, KQED, San Francisco, California  Amanda Jackson, CNN, Corpus Christi, Texas Josh Gorbutt, KBTX, Bryan-College Station, Texas Caroline Baxendale, CNN, Atlanta, Georgia 

🎉 Congratulations to our RIAS Grand Prize winner, "Flucht in den Osten - G.I.s in the DDR" (Escape to the East - G.I.s in the GDR) by Sigrid Faltin of MDR MITTELDEUTSCHER RUNDFUNK 🏆 This piece tells the story of three American soldiers who deserted to Communist East Germany to start new lives behind the Iron Curtain, sheds light on a little-known aspect of the Cold War: more than 200 NATO soldiers, mostly Americans, deserted. As Sigrid Faltin shows in her powerful film, political reasons were rarely behind their desire to leave the West. Instead, they were trying to find romance, seeking to avoid punishment for petty crimes and hoping to escape racial discrimination. We look forward to celebrating our RIAS Media Prize winners next week at our Awards Ceremony in Berlin! 🎉  

🏆 📺 Exciting News Alert! 📺 🏆 We're thrilled to announce that "Auswandern nach Amerika - Fluch oder Segen?" produced by Heinke Schröder at SWR has won the prestigious RIAS TV Award! 🎉 This insightful documentary delves into the Francisco Family's journey to the USA, exploring the complexities of emigration and the pursuit of the American dream with only 13 suitcases bound for sunny Florida and very little preparation. Watch below: https://lnkd.in/gWb7yNhW ⭐ Congratulations to the entire team for their outstanding work in bringing this captivating story to life! 🎥 👋  #RIASAwardWinner #AuswandernNachAmerika #SWR #Documentary #AmericanDream