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Interview with Sarah at a friend's appartment in Berlin, Kreuzberg.
Sarah has worked at Inforadio since 1997. Inforadio is a Berlin public news radio station, the result of a merger between East and West Berlin public radio stations. The merger has meant that employees from the former East Germany work closely with their West German counterparts. It's an interesting situation, because for forty years East German radio was completely controlled by the government. Only news that had been carefully screened by the censors was allowed to be broadcast. The western broadcasts were often guilty of their own brand of propaganda, touting the benefits of capitalism, but the western reporters were not beholden to the government. There is a lingering tension between employees of the two former German states. The westerners often criticize their eastern cousins as being to lax in their work, a residual effect of a socialist state that for all its failings did provide excellent job security. For their part, the easterners often perceive the westerners as colonizers of the East, and feel that their own unique culture is being overshadowed by the west. Recently, there was
a scandal when it was revealed that some high-profile employees and upper-management
at the radio station, and other public agencies, had ties to the Stasi.
It was taken for granted that as a tool of state propaganda, former radio
station employees of East Germany would have a relationship with the Stasi.
Early on in reunified Germany, many investigations did reveal such an
association and numerous individuals were barred from government employment.
However, the Stasi had a long reach, and thousands of West Berliners were
similarly tainted as informers for the Stasi and had previously evaded
investigation. Now, a new round of investigations is underway, and employees
of both Germanys are being scrutinized.
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