Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber. Based on real events, this series dramatizes the rise of Uber and its founder’s approach to business agreements. It showcases rapid deal-making, constant negotiation, and a willingness to abandon partnerships or change course when necessary, reflecting the American logic of prioritizing results and adaptability.
television
made and unmade
Silicon Valley. This comedy series follows tech entrepreneurs navigating the startup world. Agreements—whether with investors, partners, or competitors—are frequently made and unmade, with characters constantly adapting to new information and shifting alliances. The series depicts a culture where ongoing contact and the ability to pivot or exit deals are crucial.
Tatort
In the long-running crime series Tatort, scenes involving financial transactions or business deals often depict Germans adhering to strict price structures without negotiation. Detectives and businesspeople engage in straightforward exchanges, where the focus is on procedural integrity rather than negotiating a better deal. This portrayal reinforces the perception that price bargaining is unprofessional and potentially disreputable.
Derrick
Derrick – a Kriminalserie or detective show – remains to date the most successful of all German television shows. Its 281 episodes, filmed from 1973 until 1997, have been translated and shown in 102 countries. Derrick, the detective, is tall, slender, focused, sparing of words, analytical, unemotional. The show is all about his detective work, not about him.
Günter Jauch
Günter Jauch, moderator of the very popular German version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, is known for his dry, rational delivery and his uncanny ability to open up his quiz show guests with wit, irony and subject matter knowledge.
TV News
German television news provides an example of how Germans separate message from messenger. News anchors present the news in an unemotional, correct, almost stiff way, maintaining an objective distance to the news. They sit behind the news desk, with the reports in their hand, read nonetheless from the teleprompter, show only discreet facial expression.
More recently, news achors will come out from behind the news desk and stand in front of a large screen. Although somewhat more informal, many continue to read from notes or at least hold the news report while using the teleprompter, making clear to their viewers: “This news is official. Not subjective. Not made up. Here it is in this official document.”
The branding approach of the German networks, especially the news departments, is based on substance, not personality. Topics, journalistic methods and form of presentation are far more important than the individuals presenting the news. The news presenters are interchangeable.
Der Tagesschau
Der Tagesschau – Germany’s most popular evening news. First from November 2020:
And 2010:
And on 9 Nov 1999, the tenth anniversary of the so-called Fall of the Berlin Wall:
No Cult of Personality
Germans reject any form of cult of personality. They know relatively little about the men and women running their largest companies. High level management in these companies seldom participate in the marketing of products and services. How would the Germans have reacted to the Dr. Z television ads in the U.S. years ago?
Warning: Manipulator!
Germans are very wary of any form of emotional manipulation. It is considered indecent and unprofessional to appeal to emotions. If at all, emotions are spoken to in a subtle, rational way. Playing on emotions is not persuasive. Germans very quickly become suspicious.
In the media, politicians, business leaders and journalists alike criticize each other for using populism – appealing to emotions and deeper fears – in order to influence public opinion. Sweeping statements, crude generalizations and blanket placing of blame are considered to be insulting, counterproductive and inappropriate.
Speakers who try to get their message across via emotions such as sadness, anger or happiness are not taken seriously by the majority of German listeners. Speaking to the emotions of the masses is viewed very negatively. The German media warns time and again about its dangers.
Leaders in politics and business take a cool, rational, objective, almost clinical, approach to persuasion. When German banks and financial institutions are criticized harshly for suspected manipulation and greed they defend themselves by claiming that their critics are populists and that the problems are far too complex to be generalized.
Spock. McCoy. Kirk.
In his blogpost Stoicism & Star Trek: Think like Spock – Act like Kirk Jen Farren at the University of Exeter writes:
„Gene Roddenberry (creator of Startrek) says that he deliberately: ‘Took the perfect person and divided him into three, the administrative courageous part in the Captain (Kirk), the logical part in the Science Officer (Spock) and the humanist part in the Doctor (McCoy).’“
Farren then quotes Stephen Fry: „You have the Captain in the middle, who is trying to balance both his humanity and his reason. And on his left shoulder, you have the appetitive, physical Dr. McCoy. And on his right shoulder you have Spock, who is all reason. And they are both flawed, because they don’t balance the two, and they’re at war with each other, McCoy is always having a go at Spock. And Kirk is in the middle, representing the perfect solution.“
Kirk tries to balance emotion and reason, but he never loses sight of taking action. His choices and actions make him take risks for the common welfare, even when the purely logical thing might be to do nothing. In the words of Captain Kirk himself: ‘Gentlemen, we’re debating in a vacuum. Let’s go get some answers.“
Low Prestige
Sales is given low prestige in Germany. People in general do not like to sell. Germans even less so. High prestige in the German business world is enjoyed by the natural sciences, engineering, manufacturing, law, and until recently, banking and finance. The disciplines of sales, including account management, and marketing enjoy less prestige.
King in Germany is knowledge, research and development, invention, production. Germans in general believe that a product should sell itself. Who needs sales/marketing? Verkaufen – German for selling – begins with ver, the prefix to many German verbs which have a negative meaning.
See Heinz Erhardt, one of post-war West Germany’s most beloved comedians and actors.