Conversation meetings in the German language will be held at our premises during the summer months until the last week in September. No pre-booking is necessary for these meetings which are free of charge and open only to members of the Circle. All sessions are of two hours and commence at 6.30p.m. The following timetable applies:

Members having completed the Grundstufe IA: Every Tuesday (first meeting 9th July) 
Members having completed the Grundstufe IB: Every Wednesday (first meeting 10th July)
Members having completed the Grundstufe II or the ZD levels or have an “O” level in German: Every Thursday (first meeting 11th July).

• Members with a more advanced level in German are welcome to attend the conversation meetings which are currently being conducted by Dr Jacobs every Wednesday from 6.30p.m.

• The German-Maltese Circle is offering German language Summer Revision Courses for students who are in Forms 1 to 4. The courses consist of 20 lessons of one and a half hours each and will start on Monday, 8th July. 

• Another course being offered for the Summer months is German is Easy & Fun – an introductory course in the German language for children in Years 5 and 6 in Primary Schools. For more information visit our internet site www.germanmaltesecircle.org or kindly contact the office immediately. 

• The Grundstufe examination results will be on display on the Noticeboard at the Circle as from Wednesday, 17th July. The results of the Goethe Institute central examinations (ZD/ZMP) will also be mailed to all candidates during the month of July. 

• Applications for the 2002-2003 German language courses are expected to open during August. More information will be given in the next Newsletter. In the meantime, Government employees who wish to benefit from sponsorship for their courses are to contact the Staff Development Organisation at the Office of the Prime Minister.
  

Mooo
A farmer in Germany certainly said a mouthful in 1994 when he filed a lawsuit against the owners of a neighbouring golf club for what he claimed were the murders of 30 of his cows. He filed the suit after a veterinarian investigating the death of the cows found a golf ball lodged in the throat of one of the recently deceased. Further investigation led to the discovery that, all told, the 30 cows had swallowed about 2000 golf balls that had apparently strayed from the grounds of the golf course into the farmer's cow pasture.

Besides Germany’s in part traditional subscription newspapers - 15 newspapers are produced by publishing companies that go back to the 18th century – which account for 76 per cent of the total circulation of the German daily Press, there is also a popular ‘news kiosk’ Press with eight titles and a combined circulation of 5.694 million (2001). They are headed by Bild, Europe’s biggest-selling daily newspaper, which with 31 regional and local editions and a print run of 4.396 million is circulated nationwide. This Press sector, whose typical popular topics are presented much more attractively by television, has suffered for years from a heavy fall in circulation. The poor economic situation with high unemployment and stagnating income has had a more lasting negative impact on these papers than on newspapers sold by subscription.

Traditionally, regionally and locally distributed subscription newspapers published by private sector companies have dominated the German daily Press market. There is no political party Press. Of the parties represented in the Bundestag only the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has stakes in the publishing companies of some regional newspapers via its Press holding, the German Printing and Publishing Company. These interests deliver profits, but have hardly any journalistic influence. Subscription newspapers offer their readers a reliable overview of current events in politics, the business world, culture and sport. Their strength lies in their reporting and commenting on events within their circulation area. Because the readers’ loyalty to ‘their newspaper’ is particularly strong due to news of what’s happening in their immediate localities, the newspapers publish extensive local sections. That also fosters the market for advertisements by local businesses, which account for an average of 40 per cent of total advertising revenue.

In 2001 there was a total of 1,584 editions of daily newspapers, whose editorial content in certain sections, especially in their local pages, differentiated them from other editions. There is no sound business logic for such a fragmented Press, therefore only 356 publishing companies as newspaper publishers offer the financial and, in general, technical prerequisites for the appearance of this great number of editions. The independent publishing companies, some of which are linked with others by equity interests, finance either joint editorial departments or - which is more usual - a publishing company receives a facsimile from another newspaper. This contains the political news pages, and often the business and sports sections too. The company then adds its own regional and local news pages and advertising section. Therefore in terms of media policy the 136 full editorial departments, called journalistic units, which provide political news and comment for 1,584 editions are significant. There has been a trend to consolidation among these units and newspaper publishers in recent years, although the number of editions has hardly dropped. Some 140 of the 365 newspaper publishing companies are sole providers in their circulation areas, and in 30 of Germany’s 83 big cities and towns there is only one subscription newspaper which carries local news.

The total circulation of all German daily newspapers in 2001 was 23.675 million, a decline of 3.663 million in the last decade. Of the 136 journalistic units, 79 have a circulation of more than 100,000, accounting together for 88 per cent of total daily sales. The big-circulation newspapers also have the lion’s share of the daily papers’ advertising revenue, which in 2000 totalled about 6.55 billion euros. But due to the sluggish economy, spending on advertising declined by more than 10 per cent compared to the previous year. The downturn has forced publishing companies to take drastic cost-cutting measures, especially since at the same time their move to online technologies and stakes in commercial radio and television companies requires high investment. The subscription newspapers depend heavily on the state of the economy because advertising revenue accounts for an average of two-thirds of their profit. The other third comes from subscriptions and kiosk sales. Some nationally distributed subscription newspapers are also known outside Germany, such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) and Die Welt. But equally important for decision-takers in politics and business are regional papers with a high journalistic quality, such as the Suddeutsche Zeitung, Frankfurter Rundschau and Stuttgarter Zeitung. Their main strengths are in their regional circulation areas, but their independent reporting and well-founded comments are taken note of among influential social groups. The newspapers Handelsblatt and Financial Times Deutschland are addressed to readers in commerce and industry. Both titles focus mainly on business and financial news but also offer the general coverage of a mainstream daily paper. The total circulation of the nationally distributed subscription newspapers is about 1.5 million. There is no opinion-leading capital city Press in Berlin, as is usual in almost all other countries. But the competition in Berlin’s local newspaper market is the toughest in Germany. No fewer than seven subscription newspapers with local sections and three news kiosk ‘pop’ papers are fighting to gain supremacy in readers and advertisers. The circulation losses in recent years mean that the German newspapers’ reach, meaning their share of readers compared to the total population, has declined. There are still 320 newspaper copies to every 1,000 inhabitants, a high figure compared to other countries. But the publishers are worried about the waning interest of young people aged 14-19. In this age group the proportion of newspaper readers dropped by almost 12 per cent in the last 10 years. The publishers are seeking to halt this trend by giving greater coverage to topics which appeal to young people, special pages for them, and linking newspapers with online content offers.

Besides the daily newspapers, there are the Sunday papers with other styles and content aimed at readers and advertisers. The Sunday market was dominated for decades by the serious Welt am Sonntag and the popular Bild am Sonntag of the Axel Springer publishing company until many daily newspaper publishers began running seven editions per week or joined forces to publish special Sunday editions. German weekly newspapers are addressed to readers who want a cool and in-depth analysis of political and business events. They are regarded as influential opinion leaders, particularly the respected liberal weekly Die Zeit, which has a circulation of more than 400,000. Of interest in business terms is Germany’s group of about 1,300 advertising-financed ‘free sheets’, which mostly appear weekly, cover local stories in a very limited way, and have a total circulation of more than 90 million. In 2000 they achieved a combined advertising revenue of 1.792 billion euros. Many of them are owned by companies that also publish daily newspapers.

In the German magazine market, which in terms of the total number of publications estimated at 20,000 - is difficult to register, the popular ‘entertainment’ magazines stand out for their sometimes high circulation and their journalistic appeal. They include about 800 titles with a total circulation of more than 127 million per issue. With a combined advertising revenue of 2.5 billion euros they are the second largest advertising medium in the Press market after the daily newspapers. Among the bestsellers Stern and Bunte, radio and TV guides, and magazines for women, men and young people and on hobbies, leisure and sport. The number of TV guides has grown in line with the increase in television stations and now totals 17 titles with a total circulation of 20.3 million. In the news magazine sector, the Hamburg-based left-liberal Der Spiegel (current circulation: more than 1.1. million) had the market to itself for decades. Licensed by the then British Occupying Power in 1946, no other Press organ is linked so closely with Germany’s postwar history due to its critical reporting and disclosure of abuses of political power. Since 1993 it has had a rival in Munich-based Focus (circulation: 800,000), one of the German Press market’s greatest publishing and business successes of recent years. About one-third of German magazines are ‘house journals’ of institutions or organisations, which represent their and their members’ interests. They include ADAC Motorwelt, published for members of the German Automobile Club, which has a circulation of 13.3 million, the largest of any German periodical.

In view of the online market’s strategic importance for journalistic and business development, almost all newspaper publishing companies have developed online offers aimed at Germany’s more than 25 million Internet users (2001). Their goal is to use their newspapers’ know-how for other forms of communication and develop corresponding content management systems. But hardly any user is prepared to pay for editorial content on the World Wide Web, and spending on Internet advertising in 2000 totalled only about 150 million euros, or 0.63 per cent of the overall value of the German advertising market. At end-2001, German newspaper publishers had a total of 390 offers positioned on the Internet. But only the major Press houses have portals offering access to travel agencies, book mail-order companies, secondhand book shops or databases.

In Germany, as in other countries, publishing groups and media corporations have come into being due only partly to organic growth. More often, they have gained economic power and journalistic influence by takeovers and diversification in other media markets. In the daily newspaper sector, five big publishing groups have a combined market share of more than 42 per cent. They are headed by the Berlin-based Axel Springer company, which due mainly to the extremely high circulation of Bild has a market share of 23.6 per cent and is the leading daily newspaper publisher. Partly via subsidiaries the company has stakes in 18 German dailies. It is followed well down the rankings by the newspaper group based on the Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, of Essen, with market share of 6 per cent. The group’s strategy is aimed at becoming the market leader in individual regions. It dominates the Ruhr area, Germany’s most populous region, and in eastern German Thuringia. Big-circulation groups have also arisen based on the Suddeutsche Zeitung (Munich), Stuttgarter Zeitung, Kolner Stadt-Anzeiger (Cologne) and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

There has also been consolidation among the popular Press, in the course of which four publishing companies or groups have captured almost 60 per cent of this market. They are led by the Hamburg-based Heinrich Bauer publishing company with a market share of 22.3 per cent, followed by Axel Springer with 15.4 per cent, the Burda publishing company (Munich) with 12.8 per cent, and Gruner+Jahr (Hamburg) with 10.1 per cent.
(Reproduced from IN-PRESS No.9-2002 published by Goethe Institut Inter Nationes) 

Neue Bücher
Der Vizepräsident des Deutschen Bundestages, Herr Dr. Rudolf Seiters, hat uns nach seinem Besuch im Deutsch-Maltesischen Zirkel einige Bücher gespendet, u.a. über das Berliner Reichstagsgebäude und die Geschichte des Deutschen Bundestages, wofür wir uns an dieser Stelle bedanken möchten. 
Vielen Dank sagen wir auch Frau Helga Bonello, die uns ebenfalls mit einer großzügigen Bücher-spende bedacht hat. 

Neue Videos
Kubus-Video Nr. 47 ist soeben erschienen. Die wichtigste Nebensache der Welt ist das erste Thema Fußball. In diesem Film wird der These nachgegangen, dass die jeweils aktuelle Fußball-Begeisterung ein Spiegel der gegenwärtigen Gesellschaft und der psychischen und sozialen Bedürfnisse der Bevölkerung sei. Im zweiten Film geht es um die Pisa-Studie und ihre Folgen in Deutschland. In dieser Studie wurden die Schulleistungen in 32 Staaten miteinander verglichen. Deutschlands Schüler und Schülerinnen landeten nur im unteren Drittel. Hierzu wurden Lehrende, Schülerinnen und Schüler sowie Politiker und Politikerinnen nach den Ursachen befragt. 

New Videos with English subtitles
A small town in Eastern Germany. Two friends fall in love with the same girl. One of them gets mixed up with criminal elements and is killed. The other one has to stop his training as a photographer and starts working in a supermarket. The girl finishes her college but cannot find a job. “Forget about America” is a film about young people, their dreams and their flops. 
A gentle, spontaneous comedy, without esoteric fashion trends, about discovering another way of life, that is “Enlightenment Guaranteed”. Two unequal brothers travel to Japan hoping to find inner peace in a Buddhist monastery. Although everything goes wrong at first in Tokyo they manage their way to the Monzen monastery and find their inner peace. 
Floyd is to start his work on a ship but on the day before he asks his two friends for a farewell in a Hamburg suburb. “Gigantic” is a film about three young friends, seemingly aimlessly trying things out, putting out feelers, escaping from stagnation and discovering new perspectives. 
“As the devil came at night” is a film about a detective who comes across a mass murderer who has remained unidentified for many years. In Germany during World War II the SS initially supports his efforts, but then withdraws. He ignores an explicit command and is sent for “probation on the front line”.  

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