the area where people lived in freedom was called west berlin. the area where people lived under the iron boot of soviet communism was called east berlin. this film by the u.s. government helps to explain what it was like to live in postwar berlin. >> two and a half million people, more than half of berlin's population, lived in the american, british, and french zones. but the whole city was surrounded by the soviet zone of germany. supplying the two and a half million people of the western sectors was a system of rails, canals, and roads. >> but the soviets wanted berlin all to themselves. so, they set up a giant blockade, cutting off the roads and railroads to west berlin. >> the suspension of all traffic successfully blocked all surface access to the city. the soviets claimed that technical difficulties caused the stoppage. the truth was that they were trying to force the western allies to surrender their position in berlin. and the weapon was hunger. >> with no food or supplies able to get in, the soviets expected the allies to pack up and le

reporter: one of his most famous berlin songs references the berlin wall. legend has it that david bowie looked out and saw producer tony visconti with a singer, and the rest, of course, is history. that is the end of our little tour of bowie's berlin. it is time to say goodbye. thank you, david, for the music. sarah: and we are joined in the studio by adrienne kennedy, who we just saw in that piece, and we have a producer who produced a documentary on the berlin movie scene back in the 1970's and 1980's. thank you for joining us. i want to begin with you. what are your remarks on this day of the passing of david bowie? >> i got the message this morning at 7:00 in the morning, and i am still trying to digest it really. it is overwhelming. i grew up with david bowie, and he also grew up. sarah: speaking of growing up, you grow up in the same neighborhood. >> he kind of moved on, and he was always one step ahead of may, you can say. back in the 1970's, britain was a fairly drab place, and david bell he brought a lot of color to it, and the area where we grew

it has been a somber weeks here in berlin. since the death of david bowie was announced on monday, we have been telling you about a special relationship with berlin. however the very zenith of his popularity in the 1970's, he shed his ziggy stardust persona and fled for cold war ground zero, years that were transformative in his career. there is a story about his epic concert that made the berlin wall tremble two years before it fell. i'll culture editor attended -- our cultural editor at tended -- editor attended an event with i bowie fan. ♪ >> your home is like a david bowie museum. >> you can see what i've got. i really like this funny thing. you can dress up david bowling -- david bowie. this is david bowie as mozart. the most important thing i have is the sofa from the jungle. >> can i sit on it? i am david bowie and you are iggy pop. >> i and you might play iggy pop. >> ok. >> the first david bowie song was sound and vision, and it changed my life. ♪ ♪ >> i just wanted to say goodbye. >> he was always an inspiratio

she's syrian and been in berlin for less than a month. we weren't allowed inside the camp but she says the conditions she and her family are living in came as a shock. >> in many charges, the conditions are really catastrophic right now. >> at berlin city hall, fab ethiopia fabiorinehart. >> we heard for example, there is not enough hot water or no hot water at all. we heard about mold on the walls. we heard about the problem with insects. there was a problem of not enough privacy like huge rooms of ten or 20 people, without any walls in the rooms. >> have refugees become a business in berlin? >> refugees definitely have become a business in berlin but i would also say in any part of germany and probably also in other countries where refugees are coming right now. i've seen that there's many ways to make money of refugees on their trip because they are so dependent on people. because they don't have so much information. and also, because they are so desperate in making their journey. >> reporter: profiteering at the expense of refugees is

the area where people lived in freedom was called west berlin. the area where people lived under the iron boot of soviet communism was called east berlin. this film by the u.s. government helps to explain what it was like to live in postwar berlin. >> two and a half million people, more than half of berlin's population, lived in the american, british, and french zones. but the whole city was surrounded by the soviet zone of germany. supplying the two and a half million people of the western sectors was a system of rails, canals, and roads. >> but the soviets wanted berlin all to themselves. so, they set up a giant and railroads to west berlin. >> the suspension of all traffic successfully blocked all surface access to the city. the soviets claimed that technical difficulties caused the stoppage. the truth was that they were trying to force the western allies to surrender their position in berlin. and the weapon was hunger. >> with no food or supplies able to get in, the soviets expected the allies to pack up and leave. but they didn't. the united

it was known as the berlin airlift. force working together gave an inspiring example of joint action, and we mustn't forgethe french gave much help. >> it was a massive operation -- bigger than any airlift ever before. planes were landing ine minutes every hour of the day every day of the week for months. >> not long before, we had beenmpel peace. now we were delivering bread to maintain that peace.irlift pilots was colonel halvorsen, although he was a lieutenant back then. on his day off, he came across some german children gathered att. >> it was a tough time for kids in berlin. most of them had single parents. parents were killed -- theer during the >> he knew they were hungry. all he had in his pocket to give them were two sticks of gum. he was touched by how the kidsicks into tiny pieces so that each could get a share. that gave him an idea. he told them to watch for his plane the next day.s wings as he came in for landing. >> and i said, "you come back and stand in the space between the bombed-out buildings and th

hugo escaped into berlin, roamed all over berlin for months. it was hard for him to hide out because he was so tall. he couldn't walk around on sidewalks. eventually, dulles managed to get the london straight to fabricate, to forge the identity documents he would need to get out of germany and into switzerland, and they had an agent slip those identity documents to him including, you know, gestapo badge, you know, passports and everything. and he was able to climb aboard a train, actually, with a senior gestapo delegation on it. he was hiding in plain sight, and he made his way to bern, swisserland, where he -- switzerland, where he finally hooked up with dulles. his hair had turned completely white, it destroyed him mentally. >> to what degree kid kennedy's reliance -- did kennedy's reliance and interaction with the cia change after the bay of pigs? >> the question was how did kennedy's interaction or reliance on the cia change after the bay of pigs. there's a story that circulated around, and it's been reported in other books, that after the

sarah: naomi conrad in berlin, thank you. after this talks, chancellor angela merkel is visiting her own constituency. at her party's traditional new year's reception, she emphasized the importance of turkey and curving the flow of migrants to europe. she also thanked thousands of germans returning to help the recently arrived refugees. joining us, our guest standing by. fabi and, merkel under a lot of pressure over her open door policy, allowing refugees into germany, especially under pressure from her own party. what was the atmosphere like today? guest: it was the exact opposite. people stood up, clapped their hands, listen carefully, were very supportive of her. everybody was absolutely on her side. there were no reduces him's. and it is her own constituency, still her living room. i think it must of been quite a relaxing atmosphere after a week of strong criticism. sarah: a lot of criticism coming from that sister party, the csu in bavaria. so, what did she talk about today. did she address the migration crisis? >> it wa

>> i went to berlin, to the newspaper archives that i had been told previously did not exist. and i was very excited to find portraits my father published in the newspaper. >> it's miriam's first big discovery -- a vast spread of her father's sketches, from the 1920s to early '30s, of luminaries including politicians, sports personalities, and musicians. and what did finding the newspaper clipping do for you? >> it showed me that i could find more. it would help me find evidence of the lost work that the nazis did not destroy. >> and miriam's strange inheritance is about to lead to more evidence -- kept by the nazis themselves -- that will resurrect some of friedman's early paintings and shed new light on his darkest works. this is a particularly disturbing drawing for me -- electrocution by choice. why do you think your father didn't make that choice? that's next. >> here's another quiz question for you. the answer in a moment. ♪ i don't want to live with the uncertainties of hep c. or wonder whether i should seek treatment. i am ready. because today there's harvoni. a revo

now they plan to enjoy their summer in berlin. anchor: indonesia has some 17,000 islands and around 250,000,000 people. more than half of them are under 30. many live in poverty. because she was concerned about the kids who were turning to drugs, veronica colondam set up an organization to help them. 16 years later, ycab has become one of the largest n.g.o.'s in the world, running projects in several other countries including pakistan, afghanistan, and uganda. we caught up with her in indonesia. reporter: a train comes by every few minutes. these people are living illegally in petamburan, not far from the center of the indonesian capital jakarta. working with their hands, this family has to produce 1000 pieces a day to make ends meet. they earn about 7 euros. more than half of all indonesians live below the poverty line, earning less than 2 euros a day. veronica colondam is trying to change that by helping women to earn a livelihood. with her organization, the ycab foundation, she provides micro loans. today she's meeting with wom

i'm sarah kelly in berlin. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] >> euromaxx highlights and here is your host.ighlights and here >> greetings from berlin and welcome to our highlights edition which this time around included the following topics. great adventure. three students and their journey in an electric rickshaw. time travel. an italian photographer recreates the styles of by-gone eras. winter wonderland. the swiss city of st. gallen is worth a visit especially at this time of the year. the long wait is over for winter sport fans as ski season in many european resorts has finally begun. and once upon a time, when people hit the slopes, it was just to go skiing or snowboarding. but that is changing as resorts try to outdo one another with a

dw news, life from berlin. -- live from berlin. thank you for the company. we will see you at the top of the hour. ññ >> a man who is described as having a direct relationship to the greeks who killed 130 people in paris in november is under arrest in morocco. this announced earlier by the syrian ministry who said the detainee had spent time in syria undergoing military training and building relationships with commanders from the islamic state group. here is our reporter

at the main refugee processing center in berlin we asked sylvia, spokes woman for the city's refugee policy how underage kids could be left to fend for themselves for months. >> normally it's not case. it could be extremely mistake or error, because minors have a special status. i have to see the case because it's a special -- it must be a special case. >> she admitted the system is overwhelmed. >> we need more staff. more staff. because we have got already, but we need more. >> reporter: so almost all the kids who come here have got some kind of trauma in one way or another? >> everybody has his own the themes, his own problems. >> andreas is a social worker. this kind i place supports and houses unaccompanied minors. >> now, we have not enough places for the boys and girls. >> the numbers are so great? >> yeah, they are so great so now the problem is that when a boy from syria is coming to berlin that the time he has to wait that the process is star starting is taking a long long time. >> in that long time children are left vulnerable and after such a journey, the waiting is just s

dw news, life from berlin. -- live from berlin. thank you for the company. we will see you at the top of the hour. çÑÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñÑñ damien: hello, happy new year and welcome to "focus on europe," with some of the best personal stories behind the major headlines from all over europe. i'm damien mcguinness. great you could join us. on today's show -- he's the hero of france, but he's from mali. the italian villagers who do not need protection. and in turkey, refugee children running away to the circus. but first to france, where many people are no doubt hoping that this year will be much better than last. in november, 130 people were killed in a series of islamist terror attacks. paris was left reeling. but that wasn't the first

i believe it's not western europe, not berlin anymore being so important for warsaw. it is rather those cities like prague, thatnk -- the new government is now facing. peter: one aspect of what you're talking about is a clampdown on the media in poland. you are a reporter for polish public radio. how great are your own personal fears and how great are the fears of your colleagues concerning this clampdown? wojciech: the fears are big among my colleagues as well. the project of the new media law that has been presented says that the polish radio or polish television will no longer exist in this form. they will be transformed into another form, which means that andybody will lose jobs, they will be employed once again. many people fear that many of those colleagues won't get employed again. fear thats a big people will lose jobs. another thing is this new media direct influence of the government on the media. polish media has always been somehow influenced by the government. this is how it was always constructed. the national radio and television council was nominated b

berlin is appealing to anyone with an idea for how to repurpose this was the complex. it has become a millstone for the cash-strapped city. molly: it is time for our business update. i am joined by william hilderbrandt. we have seen here in paris some major taxi strikes taking place, and it appears they may have paid off. william: the waving flags and burning tires may have paid off. the payment is based on a complaint that uber drivers were taxis,as traditional waiting on streets to pick up passengers. taxi drivers have been protesting the rise of destructive competition from ride-sharing apps like uber. leading to a 30% drop in revenue in the past six months alone. this competition does not have to pay the same hypothesis for a license, which can be as much as 240,000 euros per driver. moving on now -- has the iphone. ? apple signaled for the first time ever, sales of the device will drop. facing its first job in revenue in 13 years. catherine viette has more. >> it seems even iphone sales may have their limits. in the latest quarterly report, apple reported that iph

i'm sarah kelly in berlin. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] awúwóóóóó >> you are watching live from paris on "france 24" shocked in turkey and beyond after a bomb blast in the tourist part of istanbul the left 10 people dead, at least it .f them confirmed 400 people said to be on the brink of death in my diet -- madaya in syria. and it is his last ever state of the union address. we are looking at barack obama's

coming to you from berlin. rodriguez -- quadriga. >> hello and a warm welcome. angela merkel is saying, we can do it. is she bluffing? we want to talk about this with guests who have been following the refugee crisis. it is a pleasure to welcome judy dempsey. she said for the first time, merkel. has a plan. a problemm is, it is without support. alan posener is with us once again. he is an anglo german author and commentator. never had arkel plan to written up for the euro crisis or the refugees. and finally, glad to see erik kirschbaum. and isorking for reuters a correspondent for the los angeles times in berlin. he says, usually angela merkel has things figured out. this time, she does not have an end in mind. two out of three say the chancellor has no plan. neither a plan a nor a plan b. but she repeats, like a mantra, the need for quicker processing of asylum applications and cooperation. both within europe and between the european union and turkey. those sounds like elements of a plan. >> there are things you have to do. people need to get the applications d

brent: dw news, live from berlin and tonight the sunni shiite divide in the middle east ast. a pattern connect the world has not seen in more than 30 years -- powder cake is the world has not seen in mortal 30 years in the united states goes into litigation gear against volkswagen. a $20 million lawsuit against the carmaker for cheating on a mission statement. and a soccer legend lands the game's toughest job, real madrid 's manager. the spanish giant fired rafael benitez . it is good to have you with us. inside the middle east tonight and that the divisions between sunni and shiite forces quickly turning political and dangerous in ways the region has not seen in two generations. the world is worried. on monday saudi arabia's gulf neighbors sided with them and cut ties with iran. the united states is urging both sides to urg show restraint. this has ignited violent contests -- protests. >> thousands of people demonstrated new the saudi embassy to protest the execution of the outspoken shiite cleric. saudi arabia cut off diplomatic relations with iran over the weekend. later,

you are up to date with dw news from berlin. we will have more at the top of the hour. >> hello and welcome to a special christmas edition of "focus on europe." now, of course, christmas is an extremely important religious festival for lots of europeans. and that's why we've decided to devote today's show entirely to the religions across europe. and that's also why i'm here right on top of the roman catholic cathedral in the middle of cologne. now you might think that germany, a country of the reformation, of martin luther, is a protestant country. but in fact, just as many catholics are living here as protestants. and they have been set a challenge by the pope. they've been asked to take in as many refugees as they can. each parish needs to take in at least one family of refugees. so how are germany's catholics

scott thuman reports from berlin. scott: the images of despair -- the frenzy -- immigrants f fleeing war and d xious to call europe their new home have been seen around the world. what many may not have seen is the invisible side effect of it all of europe in crisis mode. >> we have to tell the world th this is over. we will close our borders and we won'let anybody in now f f a while. scott: people who disagree with you, who are on the complete opposite side, think that your thinking is inhuman, it's insensitive, it's unfair. beatrix von storch: it is very hard, of course, sometimes, to speak out the truth, but the truth is we can't solve the problems of the world. we can't solve the problems of all the poor people of the world. scott: the seemingly harsh tone taken by beatrix von storch, deputy of germany's right wing alternative for deutschland party, has become part of a booming chorus. rallies have become violent, even sparked a more public revitalization of neo-nazi groups who see their continent changing, edging