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Jessy Wellmer is the new one at “Tagesthemen”
Jessy Wellmer hasn’t yet thought about a farewell ritual. photo
© Henrik Lüders/NDR/dpa
From the “Sportschau” to the “Tagesthemen”: Jessy Wellmer is the new main presenter of the ARD news flagship, alternating with Ingo Zamperoni. What makes the journalist tick?
Many people already know the 43-year-old from the “Sportschau” on the first. This Monday evening (October 30th) she will be in front of the camera for her first broadcast in Hamburg on the NDR premises in the “Tagesthemen” studio. She alternates with Ingo Zamperoni.
Wellmer succeeds presenter Caren Miosga, who will take over the political talk from Anne Will next year. The TV journalist already has experience with interviewing politicians. In addition to sports, she also moderated regional TV news on Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (RBB), then the ARD “Mittagsmagazin” was added and there were Corona extra programs on Erste.
In an interview with the German Press Agency, Wellmer said: “I already had federal ministers in front of my nose. The ‘topics of the day’ are not unnaturally coming around the corner, but that is quite logical for me.”
Volunteering at RBB
She added: “I actually wanted to go into politics when I was a trainee at Rundfunk Berlin Brandenburg (RBB). I ended up in sports quite by chance and then worked there for many interesting and very enjoyable years. But I also always did politics on the side. “
In a broadcast on Radio Eins (RBB) with Anne Will a few days ago, Wellmer talked about her training time at RBB: “I had such a hard time formulating good news.” She had to practice for a long time looking at the important things with a sharp and focused eye.
The journalist, who was born in Güstrow, Mecklenburg, in 1979, worked in the RBB sports department after a traineeship in the 2000s. She moderated sports on ZDF’s “Morgenmagazin” for a few years until 2014 and then returned to ARD. It is a product of public broadcasting.
Tone and language of moderation
When asked what she finds better about the future competition – the ZDF “heute journal” – the 43-year-old told the dpa: “What I sometimes envy the ‘heute journal’ a bit about is the largely fixed daily starting time. There is it’s a reliability for the audience.”
The moderations of “Sportschau” and “Tagesthemen” differ in some points, as Wellmer explained. “If football is the most beautiful minor thing in the world, then you could say: The news is about a lot of main things – and they are not always beautiful. This is of course also noticeable in the tone and language of the presenters.”
There are also big differences in the moderation style: “In the ‘Sportschau’ studio you stand as a whole person, with a lot of gestures and facial expressions, you are basically part of the backdrop. My role in the ‘Tagesthemen’ will certainly be reduced,” said Wellmer.
No farewell sentence at the end of the show
Most recently, the journalist also showed documentaries on ARD. It was about East Germany, high poll numbers for the AfD, declining trust in democracy and a debate about East German identity.
Wellmer has not yet thought of a farewell ritual, which is a trademark of some presenters, for the “Tagesthemen” presentation. The 43-year-old said: “I and my colleagues noticed that men tend to have such a final ritual.”
Your colleague Ingo Zamperoni always says at the end of his “Tagesthemen” presentations: “Stay confident!” The final sentence from the former “Tagesthemen” man Ulrich Wickert (80), who wished “a restful night,” is probably still ringing in many people’s ears.
Wellmer added: “But regardless: I think it’s good if I retain the freedom to make the sentence at the end of the program dependent on the day and the events in question. But if at some point I think of a Zamperoni or Wickert final sentence – or if it happens, then maybe I’ll bring it too.”