A turning point in German journalism: a document of shame: a film about the Gladbeck hostage drama

The Gladbeck hostage-taking in August 1988 marked a turning point in German journalism.

A turning point in German journalism: a document of shame: a film about the Gladbeck hostage drama

The Gladbeck hostage-taking in August 1988 marked a turning point in German journalism. After almost 54 hours, the drama on Autobahn 3 near Bad Honnef ended in blood. The documentary "Gladbeck: The hostage drama" puts the finger deep in the wound.

In August 1988, the then 14-year-old Emanuele De Giorgi, the 31-year-old police officer Ingo Hagen and the 18-year-old Silke Bischoff lost their lives in connection with the Gladbeck hostage-taking. The crime, which began with a bank robbery by the two main perpetrators, Hans-Jürgen Rösner and Dieter Degowski, expanded over the next 54 hours into a mass media event in which German journalism became an accomplice of the perpetrators.

In his documentary "Gladbeck: The Hostage Drama" - to be streamed on Netflix - director Volker Heise reconstructed the case exclusively with original image and sound recordings. The result: a harrowing contemporary document that hits the core.

A detailed review of "Gladbeck: The hostage drama" by Ronny Rüsch and Axel Max - now in a new episode of the ntv podcast "Oscars

"Oscars