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|
 | |
| Country | Germany |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Germany,Austria,Switzerland |
| Headquarters | Bonn,Germany |
| Programming | |
| Language | German |
| Picture format | 1080pHDTV (downscaled to720p for theDTT andCable feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | ARD andZDF |
| History | |
| Launched | 7 April 1997; 28 years ago (1997-04-07) |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| Digital terrestrial television | Varies within locations |
| Streaming media | |
| phoenix.de | Watch live |
Phoenix (stylised asphoenıx,pronounced[ˈføːnɪks]) is a Germanfree-to-air television channel which is operated jointly by public-service broadcastersARD andZDF. It broadcasts documentaries, news, special events coverage and discussion programmes. Phoenix's headquarters are inBonn, the formerWest German capital.
The creation of Phoenix is credited to the former chancellorHelmut Kohl, who wanted to create a "European Parliamentary Channel". However, the idea was rejected due to criticism by the public channels (ARD and ZDF) and suspicion that political pressure from Kohl could lead to a "Helmut-Kohl-Channel".
The real idea for "Phoenix - Der Ereignis- und Dokumentationskanal" ("Phoenix - the current affairs and documentary channel") came from viewers of ARD and ZDF, who wanted a "media-political correction of faults in the system of information transfer".[clarification needed][citation needed] This created the opportunity to create a "Parliamentary Channel", with the aim of increasing credibility and satisfying consumer demand.
Private channels (RTL andSat.1) criticized the creation of Phoenix because they were at the time creating their own news channels (n-tv andN24 respectively).
The headquarters of Phoenix were provisionally situated inCologne. However, in 2000, the headquarters were relocated to studios inBonn.
Phoenix's highest ratings to date were in August 2006, when it had 1.0% viewer share. With about 4.5 million viewers, it had more viewers than N-TV and N24.[1]
On November 15, 2022, Phoenix closed itsSDTV feed across its cable and satellite feeds, which means it is now only available in HD.[2]
Phoenix originally scheduled adocumentary film titledInside Südkorea – Staatskrise im Schatten von Nordkorea und China (lit. 'Inside South Korea: State Crisis in the Shadow of North Korea and China') to be aired on 6 March 2025; ahead of its scheduled broadcast, the documentary was released on the channel's website, as well as on ARD Mediathek and ZDF Mediathek (the onlinevideo on demand and streaming services ofARD andZDF, respectively) on 25 February.[3] The documentary explores theDecember 2024 South Korean martial law and the political crisis that followed.[4]
The documentary, however, was heavily criticised for allegedfar-right bias and for presenting a one-sided portrayal of the political situation in South Korea, favouring thenow-impeachedPresidentYoon Suk Yeol in the process. It features interviews with far-right figures, including Uh Dong-gyun,Jeon Kwang-hoon and former U.S. Colonel David S. Maxwell, who repeatedly assert the unproven claims that North Korea and China are working to undermine the democracy in South Korea.[4][5]
The documentary features Eric J. Ballbach, the expert on theKorean peninsula from theGerman Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), as the only person with the view against such conspiracy theory. When asked byDer Spiegel magazine, the SWP's communication department expressed the Institute's disappointment, stating that the documentary is 'highly biased and uncritical, both in the selection of information and in some of the interviewees'.[4]
Following complaints and concerns over journalistic standards, Phoenix re-examined the documetary, and by 8 March 2025, it was pulled from the channel's website, ARD Mediathek and ZDF Mediathek.[4] Its originally scheduled airing on 6 March was replaced with a documentary aboutDonald Trump.[3] The review concluded thatInside Südkorea ignored the complexity of the political situation in South Korea, and does not meet the channel's journalistic standards. The response to the inquiry fromDer Spiegel was that the documentary was 'intended to shed light on the previously less reported perspective of the conservativePPP around the suspended head of state Yoon', but it 'failed to do so with the necessary balance'.[4]
Phoenix broadcasts adeaf-subtitled version of theTagesschau, ARD's flagship news broadcast, and ZDF's premier news broadcastheute-journal, inGerman Sign Language.
The channel's flagship news broadcast isDer Tag ("The Day"), which airs from 11:00 pm to midnight. Its length enables extended reports and interviews to be included.
The showVor Ort ("On Scene") includes live coverage of political events, public lectures by important personalities, press conferences and assemblies of theBundestag andBundesrat.
Daily talk shows likePhoenix Runde (Phoenix Roundtable) with Alexander Kähler,Unter den Linden with Michaela Kolster or Michael Hirz, discuss current topics with experts or politicians.
As a benchmark in coverage, a "Meet the Press"-styleshow,Internationaler Frühschoppen is broadcast Sunday at 12 noon when the ARD'sPresseclub is not broadcast.
The seriesHistorische Debatten (Historical Debates) andHistorische Ereignisse (Historical Events), with journalist Helmut Illert, examine important topics relating to the development of theFederal Republic of Germany.
Phoenix is comparable to the American channelC-SPAN or the BritishBBC Parliament, because they also cover government and national politics.[citation needed]
Phoenix's stated aim is it to create "balance of the shortening of information, which are seen in news and magazines on television". The programming should be a "truthful illustration of the reality in correspondence with the constitutional order of the publicly-funded broadcast and television stations in Germany". The target is fulfilled with current reportages and documentaries from the vast archive of ARD and ZDF, as well as international productions fromDiscovery Channel and theBBC, dubbed into German.
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | Annual average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997[6] | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1998[7] | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |  0.3% |
| 1999[8] | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0.4% |
| 2000[9] | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| 2001[10] | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.4% | - | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | - | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| 2002[11] | 0.4% | 0.5% | 0.5% | - | 0.5% | - | 0.6% | - | - | - | - | - | 0.5% |
| 2003[12] | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| 2004[13] | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| 2005[14] | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% |
| 2006[15] | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.7% |
| 2007[16] | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 0.9% |
| 2008[17] | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 0.9% |
| 2009[18] | 1.1% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 1.0% |
| 2010[19] | 1.0% | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 1.2% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 1.0% |
| 2011[20] | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.2% | 1.1% |
| 2012[21] | 1.1% | 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 1.1% |
| 2013[22] | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 1.1% |
| 2014[23] | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 1.1% |
| 2015[24] | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.2% | 1.1% |
| 2016[25] | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.1% |
| 2017[26] | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.2% | 1.1% |
| 2018[27] | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 1.0% |
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| RTL Deutschland |
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| ProSiebenSat.1 Media |
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| Paramount Skydance |
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| Warner Bros. Discovery |
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| Disney Germany |
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| High View Group |
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| WeltN24 |
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| Acun Medya |
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| Others |
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| Sky Deutschland |
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| A&E Networks |
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| Others |
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