The ACG will host the annual Garrick Utley Memorial Lecture on Global Media Issues with Tom Buhrow, Director General of WDR, and Jörg Schönenborn, Television Director, WDR and Television Film Coordinator, ARD.
There is a $45 charge for members to attend this event. (No-shows and cancellations after May 24 will be billed.)
RSVP (acceptances only) to the American Council on Germany at 212-826-3636 or events@acgusa.org.
Tom Buhrow has been the Director General of WDR since 2013. Mr. Buhrow holds a Master’s degree in History and Political Science from the University of Bonn. In 1978, he worked at the local newspaper Bonner General-Anzeiger. In 1985, he volunteered at the largest television station in North Rhine-Westphalia, WDR. Since 1986, he was the Reporter, Editor, and Bureau Chief of the shows “Aktuelle Stunde” and “West 3 Aktuell.” After that, he worked as a Reporter and Editor for Germany’s leading newsmagazine, “Tagesschau.” In the run-up to the 1992 Presidential Election, Mr. Buhrow became the ARD correspondent in Washington, DC. Between January 2000 and 2002, Mr. Buhrow worked as a correspondent at the ARD bureau in Paris. In July 2002, he took over from Claus Kleber as chief of the ARD bureau in Washington. In September 2006, he replaced Ulrich Wickert as the host of ARD’s flagship newsmagazine, “Tagesthemen.” Also in 2006, Mr. Buhrow published a book with Sabine Stamer about his years in the United States titled Mein Amerika, Dein Amerika (My America, Your America).
Jörg Schönenborn has been Television Director of WDR and Coordinator of Television Film at ARD since May 2014. Mr. Schönenborn studied Journalism and Politics. From 1997 to 2002, he headed the WDR TV Current Affairs editorial group. From 2002 to 2014, he was WDR Television Editor-in-Chief and Director of the Politics and Current Affairs program group. Under his direction, a series of successful formats were developed, including “hart aber fair,” “Markencheck,” “Wahlarena,” and “Sport inside” on WDR Television. Mr. Schönenborn regularly presented election broadcasts on the 1st channel and the “ARD Presseclub.” For his reporting on the arson attack in Solingen, he was recognized in 1993 and 1994 with the Telestar Prize and the Axel Springer Prize for Television Journalism. In 2005 and 2009, as presenter of the ARD program “Wahlarena,” he was nominated for the German Television Prize. In 2011, as presenter of “Die Lange Obama Nacht – Halbzeit für den Präsident” he received the RIAS Television Prize.
With special thanks to Dr. Richard M. Hunt for making this lecture series possible