(; "Central German Broadcasting"), shortened to MDR (; stylized as mdr), is the

public broadcaster Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

for the

federal states A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governing status of the c ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

and

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

in Germany. Established in January 1991, its headquarters are in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, with regional studios in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

and

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

. MDR is a member of the ARD consortium of public broadcasters in Germany. MDR broadcasts its own television channel to the three states it serves and also contributes programming to the first German TV channel (), and broadcasts a number of radio channels.

History

Origins

The Mitteldeutsche Rundfunk AG (MIRAG) was founded on 22 January 1924 in

. It aired its first program on 1 March 1924 at 14:30 CET. During the ''

Gleichschaltung The Nazi term (), meaning "synchronization" or "coordination", was the process of Nazification by which Adolf Hitler—leader of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, Germany—established a system of totalitarian control and coordination over all ...

'' in the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

era, the MIRAG was transferred to the "Reichssender Leipzig" in 1934. After the end of the Second World War, the

Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; , SMAD) was the Soviet military government, headquartered in Berlin- Karlshorst, that directly ruled the Soviet occupation zone in German ...

temporarily licensed "Radio Leipzig" in 1945, which only existed for a few months until the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk was founded again. In 1946 the new program "Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, Sender Leipzig" started in the Springerstrasse broadcasting house. In September 1952, the "Sender Leipzig" program was converted to the "Berlin III" entertainment program. In 1956 the regional program of Radio DDR (English: Radio

GDR East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

), "Sender Leipzig", was introduced. On 31 May 1991, Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR) was founded as public broadcaster serving

and

, and became a member of ARD. MDR began their first television transmission immediately after DFF's final closedown on midnight of New Year's Day 1992. In August 2022 Ines Hoge-Lorenz, the managing director of the regional state branch of Saxony-Anhalt of the MDR was sacked because of her family ties to a corruption scandal ten years ago.

Studios and staff

MDR has approximately 2,000 employees. The main television studio is in

, and the main radio studio is in Halle. There are also radio and TV studios in each of the three state capitals for the territory that MDR represents:

(Saxony),

(Thuringia), and

(Saxony-Anhalt).

Finances

In 2012 87% of MDR's total annual income of €684,529,979 was derived from the licence fees payable by all households at the rate of €18.36 (per month). These fees are not collected directly by MDR but by the Beitragsservice ("fee collection service") owned jointly by ARD (and its members), the second television network

ZDF ZDF (), short for (; ), is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Launched on 1 April 1963, it is run as an independent nonprofit institution, and was founded by all federal states of Germany ( ...

, and the national radio broadcaster

Deutschlandradio Deutschlandradio (DLR; ) is a national German public radio broadcaster. History ''Deutschlandfunk'' was originally a West German news radio targeting listeners within West Germany as well as in neighbouring countries, ''Deutschlandfunk Kultur'' ...

TV and radio channels

MDR produces programming independently and in collaboration with other broadcasters, for transmission by a number of television and radio networks.

Television channels

MDR Fernsehen MDR Fernsehen is a regional public service television channel owned and operated by Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR) and serving Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. It is one of the seven regional "third programmes" that are offered within the fed ...

– third TV channel for central Germany, with regional programming for

, Saxony-Anhalt and

MDR also contributes programming to the following: *

Das Erste Das Erste (; "The First") is the flagship national television channel of the ARD (broadcaster), ARD association of public broadcasting corporations in Germany. ''Das Erste'' is jointly operated by the ARD (broadcaster)#Institutions and member org ...

– Germany's main public TV network * Phoenix – a station mainly broadcasting documentaries, special events and discussions, jointly run by ARD and

KiKa Kika may refer to: People * Kika de la Garza (1927–2017), American politician * Kika Edgar (born 1985), Mexican actress and singer * Kika Karadi (born 1975), American contemporary artist * Kika Markham (born 1940), English actress * Kika M ...

– children's network jointly run by ARD and ZDF *

arte Arte (, , ; ' ('), sometimes stylised in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European Union, European public service Television channel, channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based Europea ...

– a Franco-German cultural channel *

3sat 3sat (, ''Dreisat'') is a free-to-air German-language public service television channel. It is a generalist channel with a cultural focus and is jointly operated by public broadcasters from Germany ( ZDF, ARD), Austria ( ORF) and Switzerlan ...

– cultural network from ARD, ZDF,

ORF ORF or Orf may refer to: * Norfolk International Airport, IATA airport code ORF * Observer Research Foundation, an Indian research institute * One Race Films, a film production company founded by Vin Diesel * Open reading frame, a portion of the g ...

(Austrian Broadcasting), and SRG (Swiss Broadcasting)

Radio channels

* (MDR Saxony) – Variety music and regional programming for Saxony * (MDR Saxony-Anhalt) – regional programming for Saxony-Anhalt * (MDR Thuringia) – regional programming for Thuringia *

MDR Jump MDR Jump is a German public radio station owned and operated by the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR). It broadcasts a current-based AC format. As of 2023, it has more than 900,000 daily listeners. History As the successor of MDR Life, MDR Jump s ...

– pop music (Hot AC) *

MDR Kultur MDR Kultur is a German public radio station owned and operated by Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR). It broadcasts a culture format with current news and talk programs, along with classical, jazz and folk music. Between 1 January 2004 and 2 May 2016 ...

– culture & spoken word programming and regional classical music *

MDR Aktuell MDR Aktuell is a German public radio station owned and operated by Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (; "Central German Broadcasting"), shortened to MDR (; stylized as mdr), is the public broadcaster for the federal states of Thuringia, Saxony a ...

– 24-hour news and information (AM broadcasts ceased on 30 April 2013) *

MDR Sputnik Sputnik or MDR Sputnik is a youth-oriented German radio station, and is part of Leipzig-based public broadcaster Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR), based in Halle. The station, which primarily broadcasts pop and rock music, is the successor to the ...

– youth oriented music station. Formerly DT64 cultural youth channel of

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

broadcasting organisation. (FM in Saxony-Anhalt only, internet, DAB+ elsewhere) *

MDR Klassik MDR Klassik is a German public radio station owned and operated by the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR). The station broadcasts a classical music format, similar to BR-Klassik. It is a digital-only station and is not available via FM broadcasting ...

(DAB+ and internet streaming only) – classical music *

MDR Schlagerwelt MDR Schlagerwelt is a German, public radio station owned and operated by the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR). It mostly broadcasts schlager music, which formerly aired on the three regional MDR stations ( MDR Sachsen, MDR Sachsen-Anhalt, and MDR ...

(DAB+ and internet streaming only) – schlager music and easy listening * (DAB+ and internet streaming only) – children's programming

Musical organizations

The MDR operates two musical organizations and a ballet corps. The

MDR Symphony Orchestra The MDR-Sinfonieorchester (MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra) is a German radio orchestra based in Leipzig. It is the radio orchestra of Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, the public broadcaster for the German states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-A ...

(German: MDR Sinfonieorchester) was founded in 1915 as "Orchester des Konzertvereins" ("Orchestra of the Concert Society"). It became the "Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig" ("Radio Symphony Orchestra Leipzig") in 1924. Principal conductors have included Herbert Kegel,

Wolf-Dieter Hauschild Wolf-Dieter Hauschild (6 September 1937 – 18 May 2023) was a German conductor, choirmaster, artistic director, composer, harpsichordist and university lecturer. After working for the East German Berliner Rundfunk from 1971, he was principal co ...

, Daniel Nazareth and

Fabio Luisi Fabio Luisi (born 17 January 1959) is an Italian conductor. He is currently principal conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and chief conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra. Biog ...

. Since September 2007,

Jun Märkl Jun Märkl (born 11 February 1959 in Munich) is a German conductor. Biography One of three children born to a Japanese pianist mother and a German violinist father, Märkl studied piano and the violin as a youth. Beginning in 1978 at the Musikhoc ...

is the orchestra's principal conductor. The later

MDR Rundfunkchor MDR Rundfunkchor is the radio choir of the German broadcaster Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR), based in Leipzig, Saxony. Dating back to 1924, the choir became the radio choir of a predecessor of the MDR in 1946, then called Kammerchor des Senders ...

(MDR radio choir) was founded in 1946 as the Rundfunkchor Leipzig ("Leipzig Radio Choir"). The MDR managed MDR TV Ballet (German: MDR Fernsehballett), the only TV ballet company in Europe. It was founded in 1962 as ''DFF-Fernsehballet'', reorganized in 1992, and has 30 members. MDR sold the Ballet in 2012. It's now known as ''Deutsches Fernsehballett''.

Transmitters

MDR does not own its own transmission towers. They are owned and operated by

Deutsche Telekom Deutsche Telekom AG (, ; often just Telekom, DTAG or DT; stylised as ·T·) is a partially state-owned German telecommunications company headquartered in Bonn and the largest telecommunications provider in Europe by revenue. It was formed in 199 ...

Podcasts

Several podcasts produced by MDR are available through the iTunes Music Store and via RSS. They are essentially repeats of regular radio programmes, including: "Figaro," "MDR Info," "Programming Highlights," "Riverboat," "Sputnik" and "Unter uns."

Administration

The managing directors of MDR: * 1991 to 2011 , founding director of MDR * 2011 to 2023

Karola Wille Karola is a Danish, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Norwegian, and Swedish feminine given name that is a feminine form of Karol and Carolus and an alternate form of Carola. Notable people with the name include the following: Given name * Karo ...

* up from November 2023 Ralf Ludwig

Popular MDR productions

MDR produces several programs for the ARD, including crime drama episodes for the series ''

Tatort ("Crime Scene") is a German-language police procedural television series that has been running continuously since 1970 with 30 feature-length episodes per year, making it the longest-running German TV drama. Developed by the German public-se ...

'' ("Crime Scene") and ''

Polizeiruf 110 ''Polizeiruf 110'' ("Police call 110") is a long-running German-language detective television series. The name refers to the emergency telephone number of the ''Volkspolizei''. The first episode was broadcast 27 June 1971 in the German Democratic ...

'' ("Police Emergency 110"). MDR also produces the successful hospital series ''

In aller Freundschaft (''In all friendship'') is a German television soap opera that began airing in 1998 every Tuesday. The series follows the staff of the fictional Sachsenklinik hospital in the city of Leipzig. The series is produced by Degeto (a subsidiary of ...

'' ("In friendship") and the animal series ''Abenteuer Zoo'' ("Adventure Zoo"), ''Deutschlands wilde Tiere'' ("Germany's Wild Animals") and ''Europas wilder Osten'' ("Europe's Wild East").

References

External links

* {{Authority control ARD (broadcaster) Mass media companies of Germany Television networks in Germany Television stations in Germany Radio stations in Germany German-language television networks German news websites Television channels and stations established in 1991 Mass media in Leipzig 1991 establishments in Germany