MEDIA
Since reunifi cation, postal services have been under the jurisdiction
of the Deutsche Bundespost Postdienst and telecommunications
under Deutsche Bundespost Telekom. Intensive capital
investments since reunifi cation have rapidly modernized and
integrated most of the obsolete telephone network of the former
GDR. In 2003, there were an estimated 657 mainline telephones
for every 1,000 people. Th e same year, there were approximately
785 mobile phones in use for every 1,000 people.
Th ere are 11 regional broadcasting corporations, including
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, which operates Channel Two nationally.
In 1999 there were 77 AM, 1,621 FM, and 373 television
stations. In 2003, there were an estimated 570 radios and 675 television
sets for every 1,000 people. About 250.8 of every 1,000 people
were cable subscribers. Also in 2003, there were 484.7 personal
computers for every 1,000 people and 473 of every 1,000 people
had access to the Internet. Th ere were 13,847 secure Internet servers
in the country in 2004.
Th ere are about 305 national, regional, and local newspapers
in Germany, as well as a large number of other periodicals. Of
the newspapers sold on the street, the Bild has the largest circulation
at about 3.8 million in 2005. Th e Berliner Zeitung, founded in
1945 but completely redesigned in 1997, is a nationally prominent
daily with a circulation on 2005 of about 180,000. Other infl uential
daily national newspapers (with 2005 circulation rates unless
noted) are: the Express (Cologne, 468,800 in 2004), Rheinische
Post (Duesseldorf, 443,100 in 2004), the Sachsische Zeitung (Dresden,
416,800 in 2004), the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Frankfurt,
377,000), Die Welt (244,000 in 2004), Frankfurter Rundschau
(167,000), Suddeutsche Zeitung (Munich, 437,000), Der Tagesspiegel
(135,000), and Die Tageszeitung (59,000).
Over 20,000 periodicals are published in Germany. Th e bestknown
internationally is the news magazine Der Spiegel which is
modeled aft er the American Time magazine. Th e German Press
Agency, owned by German newspaper publishers and publishers’
organizations, furnishes domestic and international news. Th ere
are hundreds of small press agencies and services.
Th e Basic Law provides for free press rights, and the government
mostly supports these rights in practice, though propaganda
of Nazi and certain other proscribed groups is illegal, as are statements
endorsing Nazism.