TV Eichberg (local TV)
In the 1990s, TV Eichberg was a local private television broadcaster in Baden-Württemberg in the Waldshut district , on the border with Switzerland . The founding initiative in autumn 1994 consisted of individuals - adults as well as young people - and was conceptually committed to informing and entertaining the population of the catchment area. The start of broadcasting was financed by a support group. The programs were broadcast in cooperation with two cable network operators.
The programs contained reports of supraregional historical value: On May 23, 1995, the program 50 Years of the End of the War on the "Occupation of the Waldshut District by the French Army" at the end of April 1945 and on November 2, 1995 the program Brückenschlag Germany-Switzerland a . a. "About the construction of a pioneer bridge [from the Swiss Army and Federal Armed Forces] over the Rhine between Küssaberg and Zurzach ."
A 'test broadcast' in November 1994 dealt with the history of the Romans in the region .
background
From the beginning of the 1990s, local TV stations could be established by small companies (e.g., local newspapers ) or by initiative groups, as the now mature video technology with inexpensive, semi-professional offers for equipment significantly reduced the costs for film recording and editing would have. Feeding in via cable was the only way of distribution during this period, broadcasting via satellite was not legally permitted - a local station had to serve a defined environment and should not be received 'worldwide'.
At the same time, the founding of the initiatives, which are often seen as “independent”, was also a continuation of the “alternative” media practice developed in the 1970s / 80s, committed public relations work and - more politically speaking - counter-publicity . The catchphrase was “television by citizens for citizens”.
In some states were the respective State Media Authorities also open channels established. This was not the case in Baden-Württemberg.
The broadcasters "from the very beginning" also tried to implement the claim to grassroots democratic decision-making structures and a cooperative division of labor. Many broadcasters saw themselves as non-commercial broadcasters . Depending on the circumstances, the work - at least in the beginning - was mostly voluntary.
prehistory
At the beginning of the 1990s, cabling projects also began in rural areas - mainly in western Germany - which, however, were lengthy and costly due to the distances between the villages and the predominantly single-family houses. In the Waldshut district, the projects were carried out by Deutsche Telekom and a private company. In order to increase the attractiveness of their offers, the companies were also open to local television projects and often made their facilities available free of charge.
Meetings of those interested in a station in the Waldshut district took place in various localities and in the autumn of 1994 the TV Eichberg station was founded. The participants formed a support group (eV) and a production team.
Broadcast activity
After the test broadcast on November 23, 1994, the station received approval from the State Office for Communication (LFK) for its first broadcast on May 23, 1995. The permit referred to themed programs that could be preceded by a preliminary program with short reports. The second program “Brückenschlag” was approved accordingly on November 2, 1995. The programs were convincing on site and “during a conversation with the President of the State Office for Communication (LfK), Dr. Eugen Volz , to whom the private television broadcaster was invited to Stuttgart through the mediation of the state parliament member Peter Straub [...] assured Dr. Volz (the project) gave his full support. ”And asked to apply for a license.
Test broadcast (November 23, 1994)
Contributions of the program (selection)
- Friendly match of a 'High Rhine Selection' against Borussia Dortmund . The team with the coach Ottmar Hitzfeld and the club chairman Niebaum was in the training camp in Switzerland. The game was played on July 26, 1994 on the initiative of FC Grießen and SC Lauchringen .
- Opening of the senior citizens' residential complex in Wutöschingen in October 1994 and guided tour by the then mayor Horst Albicker.
- Documentation of the "Römerbrücke" (Volkenbachbrücke) near Jestetten and the wall of the Celtic oppidum Altenburg-Rheinau .
First broadcast "50 Years of the End of the War" (May 23, 1995)
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The main program of the show was based on an archive and newspaper research, photos of the Südkurier and from a private collection as well as recordings of the broadcasting team from the locations.
“'A touch of horror' was the headline of the program focused on the end of the war on the Upper Rhine , which […] impressed with its subtle nuances. Contemporary witnesses and historians had their say. "
The preliminary program included a contribution to the crisis situation of the textile company Lauffenmühle in Lauchringen.
The main program consisted of contributions from Germany and Switzerland on the explosive military situation in April 1945 on the German-Swiss border and the experiences of the population.
The topics discussed were the French advance along the Rhine and the last battles of a retreating German corps in the Black Forest and in the Wutach Gorge . At the Swiss border , the Reckingen Rhine power station was prevented from being blown up . The dramatic situation at the Stühlingen - Schleitheim border crossing , to which hundreds of refugees from Germany pushed, was highlighted by a former commander of the Swiss border troops, Dr. H. Wanner, Schaffhausen (CH) presented in a slide show. A round of talks with contemporary witnesses and an interview with the Swiss writer Brigitte Schoch supplemented the report on the commemorative event marking the 50th anniversary of the evacuation of the villages of Jestetten , Altenburg and Lottstetten in the German-Swiss border area by the French occupying forces in June 1945. The program concluded with the Report on the Klettgau villages that escaped evacuation through the mediation of the Catholic hierarchy up to and including the apostolic nuncio Roncalli in Paris. As a thank you for having fulfilled a vow, the von Erzingen families built the mountain chapel .
Bridging Germany-Switzerland (November 2, 1995)
The program was broadcast on November 2, 1995 via the cable networks of the companies ACOTEC and Telekom (Waldshut-Tiengen).
“The opening part of the evening program was surprisingly professional and refreshing, with brief information about the station, a program preview, sports reports and advertising [...] In the main program, TVE broadcast a comprehensive film report on the military bridging maneuver between Kadelburg and the Swiss bank [... and a] fire spectacle on the Railway bridge between Koblenz (CH) and Waldshut . "
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The preliminary program included excerpts from the visit by the artist couple Christo and Jeanne-Claude on September 4, 1995 to the exhibition about their life's work at Bonndorf Castle in the Black Forest.
Main program:
- Military bridging 22. – 27. June 1995
Joint exercise by pioneer troops of the Swiss Army ( engineering team ) and the German Armed Forces with the construction of a crossing for heavy vehicles over the Upper Rhine near Bad Zurzach - Küssaberg .
- Historical bridging 22/23 July 1995 ( Roman Day )
The Roman Day on July 22nd & 23rd, 1995 was a spectacle around the Rhine bridge Zurzach-Rheinheim between Bad Zurzach (Tenedo) and Rheinheim ( Roman camp Dangstetten ) with legionaries, market bustle and troop camps in the historic Roman fort in Bad Zurzach . In the evening there was a concert with the Celtic bard Roland Kröll and his wife, the glass harpist Ursula Kroell.
- Report on the excavation of the foundations of a Gallo-Roman temple at the foot of the Küssaburg by the Freiburg Archaeological Institute .
- Border country talk by the mayors of the German-Swiss Klettgau in Trasadingen on October 26, 1995.
- Building a cultural bridge with festive events on both sides of the Rhine and a fireworks spectacle by the Zurzach artist Santhori on the Waldshut-Koblenz railway bridge on September 9, 1995.
History of the station
The first program at the end of the war was financed by the TV Eichberg sponsorship group. The editorial work was divided between the members of the sponsorship group and freelance authors according to their interests and competence. The recording and production team consisted mainly of skilled and (professionally) interested young people. The announcer was a young woman from a broadcasting community.
The program Brückenschlag was produced in-house by the team and with private funds and advertising income. Advertising mails were integrated, each of which had the character of short contributions. During the production, there were contacts and an exchange of materials with the two start-ups on the Swiss side, Schaffhauser Fernsehen and Tele M1 in the canton of Aargau .
In September 1995, in another cabling area of the ACOTEC company, a documentary about the “Festival Program of the Sasbach Community ” (Kaiserstuhl) with a concert by the Moscow Piano Trio was produced and broadcast.
last activity
After the program bridging the gap , (long-term) topics of regional and supraregional importance were followed by part of the team ( aircraft noise conflict at Zurich Airport ) and the next program was prepared. a. dealt with the commitment of the Klettgau-Gymnasium Tiengen for a "School in Africa" and portrayed a DJ from the district. During this period, however, the task of systematically expanding the cable networks fell. The cable connection turned out to be not competitive with the satellite dishes in the country .
At this point in time (1997), the Internet presence under consideration could not be realized for technical reasons. The 'third broadcast' was still distributed via video cassettes. The current team has now realized independently commissioned productions (“Modern Heimatfilme”) and has been committed to various lectures and courses (libraries, youth centers). The association TV Eichberg eV was dissolved on July 4, 1998 and deleted from the register of associations on September 15, 1998. In 2001, the personal work context - mostly due to the move of the younger participants - ended. In November 2001 there was a legal regulation.
archive
In addition to the recording cassettes (S-VHS) for programs and parallel productions, the archive of TV Eichberg also contains literature and documents that were used to prepare the contributions. Only in exceptional cases are originals, but numerous copies of inaccessible or little-known sources and documents such as the map of the locations of menhirs and dolmens on the Upper Rhine and in the southern Black Forest.
Impact history
Based on their experience and competence, members of the team created video productions for municipal and medium-sized clients until 2001:
- The Klettgau film - for the 25th anniversary of the merger of seven localities to form the municipality of Klettgau , 1996. As part of this project, the 16mm material from the post-war period in Erzingen was rediscovered.
This archive material formed the basis of the SWR production Die Frauen von Erzingen, broadcast in January 2001 in the series Landesschau on the go.
- The struggle of the Lauffenmühle - management and staff worked together with the local community of Lauchringen and successfully for the traditional textile factory. Documentation from 1994–1998.
- The Küssaberg film - history and present in a portrait of a rural community, 2001
At the end of a comment on the “Klettgau media location” in the age of the Internet and Youtube, the local press recalled times past in a commentary on the flood of new media activities in 2008: “It's a shame that the TV station Eichberg no longer exists.”
The video films from TV-Eichberg can be borrowed from the district media center of the Waldshut district.
Individual evidence
- ^ "A small ARD, with news, sport and show." Thomas Bury in: Badische Zeitung : Local television from you for you , February 9, 1995.
- ^ Südkurier : Failed due to circumstances , February 12, 1999.
- ↑ Südkurier: Permanent license for local TV? , November 15, 1995.
- ^ Badische Zeitung: After many problems a successful start to broadcasting , May 26, 1995.
- ↑ As a result of the “insufficient cabling of households of less than 20 percent”, larger advertisers stayed away and TV Eichberg stopped its broadcasting activities. (Südkurier: Failed due to circumstances , February 12, 1999).
- ↑ The Alb-Bote took the information from a report in the Küssaberg official gazette : (Cover story) Black screen at "TV Eichberg" in: Alb-Bote, February 12, 1999.
- ↑ Manfred Hüfner: Media location in: Südkurier, November 15, 2008.
- ↑ District Media Center