Something for everyone at this Berlin newsstand (zeitungshaendler). The "newsie" (in American slang) offers everything, ranging from the gray and ever-serious Frankfurter Allgemeine ("Zeitung fur alle Deutschland") with its heavy diet of economic news, all the way to the screaming color of a boulevardzeitung tabloid newspaper.
Before the reader sniffs at the tastes of one group of readers or the others, it should be noted that the economics of distribution favor the news vendor selling all types of newspapers. The commuter rushing to the S-bahn will save time because something in this display meets his or her needs, where it is needed, when it is needed.
My father, who is a veteran U.S. wholesale newsdealer (zeitungsgrosshaendler), once offered me the useful advice that when one goes into a strange city, it is always a good idea to buy a copy of the local newspaper. This makes people on the street think that you belong there, and it will also contain useful tips (local festivals, political demonstrations, road construction projects, etc.).
In a big city, with so many daily papers available, the choice of what one reads is noted by other people. When I would work overnight, I came "home" too late for the Army mess hall breakfast, and so I ate breakfast in a neighborhood konditorei where the elderly woman who managed it made sure that I had lots to eat. She used to worry, though, because for someone who seemed so nice, I had terrible taste in newspapers. I could never explain well enough to her in German that I read the boulevardzeitung because it had very simple writing. I had never studied German in school. With the pictures, I could understand the stories. She still believed that I should read something more serious.
On the other hand, on a bitterly cold morning in February 1970 I stumbled into the elegant fruehstueckzimmer of the Hotel Columbus in Bremen and even though I had shaved and washed up after my overnight train ride, the waiter treated me with suspicion. His attitude changed when I imitated the executive who I had seen in an advertisement-- I confidently asked for a copy of Frankfurter Allgemeine. He brought a copy from the restaurant's rack, and then watched me carefully to see what I would do with it. I folded the broadsheet carefully so it fit on the tablecloth, and then dug into the first story. The thick financial stories left my head spinning, but the waiter remained courteous and helpful through the rest of the meal.
[In a future page in the "Stories/Geschichte" section of this webpage, I hope to include a set of typical 1969 Berlin news headlines, from both sides of the Wall.]
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Link to Berlin stories/Geschichte.