After spending three weeks in the U.S., a broadcast journalist from Germany says his experience in East Texas will impact his reporting once he returns home.

In late March, Raphael Jung, a news editor for the ARD network in Berlin, participated in an exchange program for broadcasters through the RIAS Berlin Commission.

RIAS, an acronym for Radio in American Sector, was a U.S.-funded radio station that broadcast information and music across East and West Germany during the Cold War until Germany’s reunification.

More than 2,000 American and German journalists have participated in this Trans Atlantic exchange since 1993.

Jung and nine other fellows spent two weeks in Washington, D.C. and New York City. Then they split up to spend a “station week” embedded in host news organizations in Texas, Florida, Missouri, Illinois and South Dakota.

In Tyler, Jung learned about the inner-workings of the largest news organization in East Texas through job shadowing and open discussions. Working alongside KLTV’s producers, anchors, reporters, photographers, digital content producers, and news managers allowed for robust dialogue about the differences and similarities in the broadcasting industry in each country.

Jung spent one-on-one time with more than a dozen members of the KLTV staff, exploring exploring the innovative ways technology is incorporated into digital news gathering. He learned about the station’s television broadcasts and digital platforms, which include streaming channel East Texas Now, websites, social media, and 11 mobile apps dedicated to news, weather, high school football, Spanish language news, pets, as well as cooking.

Outside the KLTV newsroom, the week also included appointments and activities that offered a taste of the culture and character of East Texas, including: attending the 66th Tyler Azalea and Spring Flower Trail; touring a Christian Spanish-language radio station; a hike at Tyler State Park, a visit to the American Freedom Museum in Bullard; buying cowboy boots before a horseback riding lesson; a firearms safety demonstration; and sampling authentic Mexican cuisine and Texas barbecue.

Jung was also particularly interested in learning more about politics in Texas, as he covers the changing political landscape of Central and Eastern Europe for his home network.

“The RIAS program helped me to gain a much more realistic view and a better understanding about what is at stake for the voters that will head to the ballots in November,” Jung said.

Tyler Mayor Don Warren presented Jung with a ceremonial key to the city and the Smith County Commissioners Court acknowledged the visiting journalist during their weekly meeting. He also met with Smith County Republican Party chairman David Stein.

“During my first dinner in Tyler, Texas, just after I arrived from New York to my station week, my host and KLTV anchor Lane Luckie told me that for him participating in the RIAS program has been not only a great and mind-blowing event, it has also changed his outlooks and his life. Now, after finishing the program myself, I couldn’t agree more.”

The views expressed in this blog do not necessarily reflect the views of KLTV/KTRE-TV or Gray Television. They are solely the opinion of the author. All content © Copyright 2024 Lane Luckie