Angela Merkel

An investigation into how far-right leaders in Germany have risen to the brink of power. Reporter Evan Williams examines the reasons behind the surge in support for their brand of hardline nationalist politics, and the roles of Russia and the U.S.

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Ten years ago this summer, she said the historic sentence: “We can do it”. In the WDR interview, Angela Merkel speaks publicly for the first time with refugees about the refugee movement of 2015.

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Jaan Tootsen’s documentary follows President Toomas Hendrik Ilves in the last year and a half of his term in office – as he grapples with the complexities of world politics and his private life. Tootsen’s keen camera eye follows Ilves at his most difficult moments, showing no mercy, but creating a gripping, rather harsh and at the same time very human portrait of the President.

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An analysis of the rise of the European far-right, increasingly present in both politics and everyday life: an inquisitive journey through France, Germany and Belgium.

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Angela Merkel, Germany's first female chancellor, ended the "Merkel era" in 2021 after 16 years and with it a remarkable rise from "Kohl's girl" to "the most powerful woman in the world". Today their legacy is overshadowed by the climate crisis, Russia and the refugee issue. Two and a half years after her departure, the documentary series sheds light on the key years of her career and chancellorship, including Samira El Ouassil, LeFloid, Marina Weisband and Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. The series focuses on the view of the “Merkel Generation” on the chancellorship of the first woman at the head of Germany.

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The market regulates everything! Diligence and work create prosperity! Capitalism needs growth! What is the truth behind the great principles of capitalism? And how do they work in Eastern Germany - a region that has been a capitalist test laboratory for around 30 years? It is symbolic of various places in the world that are going through similar processes. Renowned economic experts answer questions. How does a large-scale settlement of a global corporation like DHL take place and what must politics make possible for this? What happens when investors pour around a billion euros into one of the largest real estate projects in Europe in the Baltic Sea resort of Binz (Prora) on the Island of Rügen and no place is created that is worth living in? And how are the people in places like Zeitz, which capitalism has obviously forgotten? The film takes you through various stations, through the strongholds of Eastern German capitalism and the places where capitalism has not yet arrived.

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With firsthand accounts and access to prominent figures around the world, this comprehensive docuseries explores the Cold War and its aftermath.

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They call themselves Fancy Bear, Cozy Bear or Voodoo Bear. Elite units of the Russian secret services are hidden behind these code names. They are among the most dangerous hackers in the world. The bears were already in the computer of then-Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2015, interfered in the US election campaign in 2016 and are currently influencing the war in Ukraine. The makers of the successful YouTube channel “Simplicissimus” in co-production with funk and SWR are back and show the destructive potential of state hacking with this documentary. With the help of leading German hackers, cyberspace experts and a lot of humor, they delicately demystify the Russian bears: Who are the people behind them? How do they operate? And what makes them so incredibly dangerous?

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A portrait of Alexei Navalny (1976), the staunchest opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, severely poisoned in 2020, arrested in 2021 and died on February 16, 2024 in a Siberian prison camp under unclear circumstances.

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Danish documentary about the relationship between Queen Magrethe II and the prime ministers.

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The war in the Ukraine has changed the way many European countries view Russian politics. Suddenly it became clear how dependent countries had become on Russian gas imports for decades and what Vladimir Putin was up to. However, no country needs more gas than Germany. It was only after Russia's invasion of the Ukraine that the German government realized that Russia had long used gas as a weapon to impose its will on states. The instrument created for this purpose is the natural gas production company GAZPROM. So how did Germany become so dependent on Russian gas? The documentary shows how, over several decades and several changes of government, a broad alliance of politicians and business representatives did everything possible to secure Germany's energy supply with cheap Russian gas, while the Kremlin's foreign policy became increasingly aggressive and the warnings of experts went unheeded.

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Driven by extensive archive material and interviews with those who know her, this is the astonishing story of how a triple outsider – a woman, a scientist, and an East German – became the de facto leader of the “Free World”, told for the first time for an international audience.

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He has always been there. No one has been in German politics as long as Wolfgang Schäuble. He looked back on 50 years as a member of the German Bundestag. Schäuble was a man who helped shape the fate of the Republic for decades. He shaped politics - as the manager of German unity, for example. In 1990, he was the victim of an assassination attempt and fought his way back to life. He died in December 2023.

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Follows the man who survived an assassination attempt by poisoning with a lethal nerve agent in August 2020. During his months-long recovery, he makes shocking discoveries about the attempt on his life and decides to return home.

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Documentary about former German chancellor Angela Merkel’s political ascent and mental strength, featuring interviews with her and a variety of notable politicians.

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In March 2020, the world shuts down. Billions of people were confined to their homes by a virus. As it became clear that only a vaccine could stop the pandemic, a race began between the four great powers: the USA, Europe, Russia and China. The first to develop a vaccine would gain a significant advantage in global geopolitics.

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The pride of Napoleon's victories, the Arc de Triomphe, whose first stone was laid in 1806 at the top of the Champs-Élysées, is, along with the Eiffel Tower, one of the most visited monuments in the French capital. Wanted by an emperor, inaugurated under the reign of a king (Louis-Philippe) and sanctuarized by the Republic, this patriotic temple polarizes the passions of a whole nation. A historical portrait before "packaging", which teems with anecdotes and unsuspected details.

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The film shines a light onto federal chancellor Angela Merkel and her now ending 16-year-long tenure. An era, not an episode. And a vagarious relationship history between the chancellor and the Germans. Who has changed whom here?

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On October 10, 2005, Angela Merkel becomes German Chancellor. After 16 years, she now wants to clear the field. We take a look back at the many different faces of our Chancellor. In addition to Wolfgang Bosbach, Gregor Gysi and Kai Diekmann, extreme mountaineer Reinhold Messner, presenter Nina Eichinger, comedian Wigald Boning, former minister Annette Schavan, former President of the Bundestag Nobert Lammert, actress Uschi Glas and entrepreneur Gloria von Thurn und Taxis share their very personal views.

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Montage of news, reports, talk shows, live broadcasts, video blogs. Together, they form the basis for a polyphonic choir that intones, condenses and follows the story of the pandemic, from January 2020 to the present day, with a focus on Germany. A chronicle of devastation can be seen as well as a chronicle of discord and rebellion: against the virus, against fate, against reality.

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Right-wing extremist acts of violence are increasing in Germany. The documentary traces how extremists have developed plans of overthrow and have carried out terrorist plots as well as assaults on Jews or migrants and also how far-right extremists infiltrated security services, which are actually there to protect the population and the state from such attacks. This raises the question of what the German authorities are doing to confront the growing problem and what options they have for action to counter the rising right-wing extremism in Germany. FRONTLINE journalist Evan Williams goes on a journey through Germany, meets the people involved and investigates these burning questions.

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Since the summer of 2020, a battle has been raging between the European Union and Hungary: while the Fidesz party, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, seems to question certain principles, inherent to any democratic country, and harasses members of the opposition, the European Union is reluctant to contribute funds to the coffers of countries which, like Hungary itself, and Poland, in turn question the pillars of the common European policy.

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Sassnitz is a small coastal town at the Baltic Sea on the Island of Rügen. In its vicinity are the world-famous chalk cliffs, a tourist magnet. The Mukran Port is also part of the municipality. The overseas port is the starting point for the construction of Nord Stream 2, a natural gas pipeline that connects Germany directly with Russia. In 2020, the port town hit the international headlines. Even the New York Times reported and cited Mayor Frank Kracht as a staunch opponent from the northeast German province against the rumbling America of Donald Trump. The reason is the undisguised threat from Washington to ruin the international port economically if the natural gas pipeline continues to be built from there. Many jobs and the region's economic stability are at risk. Reporter Klaus Scherer documents the case, questions experts as well as those affected and looks at the behavior of national politicians towards the USA and how they react to the interference in internal affairs.

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The right to vote is at the foundation of America's democracy. But not every vote is created equal. How does the system work, and can it be fixed?

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In 2020, the world changed. This topical series examines the coronavirus pandemic, the efforts to combat it and ways to manage its mental health toll.

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