Broadcasting Board Supports DW's Strategic Direction
With its strategic direction through 2035, DW is responding to profound changes in the global media landscape. The strategy focuses on four key areas: strengthening DW’s value for Germany and Europe, increasing impact through greater focus and clearer positioning, improving the accessibility of journalistic content, and further developing DW into a digital, data-driven media organization. To achieve these goals, DW will place greater emphasis on partnerships, technological innovation, and closer collaboration among journalists across countries and languages.
The Chair of the Broadcasting Council, Prelate Dr. Karl Jüsten, said:
“The world is changing rapidly. This makes an independent Deutsche Welle that provides reliable information and orientation to people around the globe more important than ever. The Broadcasting Council welcomes the DW 2035 vision, which strengthens DW’s ability to meet future challenges while further developing its journalistic mission. At the same time, the decision on the Greek-language service demonstrates that DW’s transformation can create new room for manoeuvre. One thing remains clear, however: DW needs a reliable long-term financial foundation in order to fulfil its mandate.”
DW’s financial situation remains challenging. While additional funding for staffing was provided in 2026 to partially offset higher personnel costs resulting from collective wage agreements, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media have also indicated that comparable funding may be available for 2027. At the same time, the reduction in Official Development Assistance (ODA) funds included in the federal budget proposal for 2027 will lower the federal grant to €408.6 million, €16.9 million below previous medium-term projections, increasing consolidation pressures, particularly from 2028 onwards.
To address these challenges, DW is continuing its transformation process. The aim is to create more efficient structures, strengthen cooperation among its European language services, and make better use of shared journalistic resources. Initial experience suggests that these measures are already opening up new opportunities.
Against this backdrop, the Broadcasting Council decided to continue DW’s Greek-language service in a reduced form from 1 January 2027. DW regards its linguistic diversity as a key element of its international impact and continues to see the Greek-language service as an important contribution to communicating German and European perspectives worldwide.
The Broadcasting Council also discussed the planned restructuring of DW’s German-language services, which has been developed in response to budget reductions expected in 2027. DW intends to bring together journalism and language learning in an integrated digital offering aimed at German learners worldwide as well as German-speaking communities abroad. The Broadcasting Council will continue its deliberations on the proposed changes at one of its forthcoming meetings.
In addition, the Broadcasting Council held an initial orientation debate on the key proposals for a reform of the Deutsche Welle Act presented by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. The objective of the proposed amendment is to adapt DW’s legal framework to the changing conditions of the digital information environment. The proposed changes were presented and discussed, although a substantive assessment was not yet the focus of the debate. The Broadcasting Council sees a need for further discussion and will revisit the reform proposals at future meetings.