‘All of Europe—if not the entire world—is under pressure, and public service broadcasting is no exception. There are budget cuts and efforts by politicians to undermine the independence of our journalistic and artistic work. In my view, it is crucial to counter these strong headwinds. This applies not only to investigative formats but should also be reflected in the cultural sphere—aesthetically and artistically as well as journalistically (in terms of content, depth, and diversity).’

Martin Bürkl coordinates the Audio Music category.

He is a Commissioning Editor and Producer for Radio and TV at WDR, focusing on classical music, contemporary, and jazz across WDR 3 (radio), WDR Television, ARTE, 3sat, and Das Erste (ARD). He oversees in-house productions featuring our four WDR ensembles and commission TV documentaries for ARTE as well as one-hour radio features—elaborately produced, much like radio dramas—covering music-related topics.