After being silent for several months and not communicating with the fans, NDR finally revealed details about their internal selection. Additionally, they revealed two new key figures in their delegation.
The decision has already been made
Thomas Schreiber, Head of Entertainment at NDR, confirmed that the German entry for Eurovision 2020 has already been selected since December 12th. However, the NDR itself did not make the decision. Instead, two juries decided the act over several rounds of voting. One jury consists of music professional who in the past have already voted in Eurovision; the other jury, the “Eurovision-Jury“, consists of 100 Eurovision fans who represent the voting behaviour of the European televoters.
Switching from national final to internal selection
In an interview with dwdl, Thomas Schreiber also talked about the reasons why they decided to scrap the national final. First and foremost, the low viewing figures in the last years killed the national final. For example, last years national final only managed a market share of 9.4% in its peak, which is a poor result for NDR.
Another big reason, however, is the discrepancy in who voted in the national final compared to who voted in Eurovision. After analyzing the hashed numbers in both shows, NDR realized that there was an extremely small intersection of both. In total, only 6.6% of everyone who voted in the national final also voted in Eurovision, which means that 93.6% of the voters did not decide in the national final. Furthermore, NDR also found that the national final attracts mostly older voters, while Eurovision attracts a younger audience.
Schreiber also emphasized the importance of the additional time they are gaining through an internal selection. For example, they are already gathering ideas for staging and are working closely with different international choreographers to ensure an impressive and innovative stage concept in May.
New HoD and “ESC-Teamleader”
NDR not only presented new information about their internal selection but also confirmed Alexandra Wolfslast as the new head of delegation. Previously working at NDR 2, she will be the main organiser and the main contact person of the German delegation for the EBU.
Additionally, NDR also introduced a new team leader, Christian Blenker. He will hold the primary editorial responsibility for the German delegation, organizing everything related to TV, radio or social media.
Germany in Eurovision
During the 2010s, Germany experienced many highs and lows in Eurovision. After winning in 2010 and two more top 10 finishes in 2011 and 2012, Germany found itself struggling and even placing last twice, in 2015 and 2016. However, in 2018, Germany changed its selection process, leading to Michael Schulte’s shock fourth place in Lisbon.
However, the same process did not work in 2019. The duo S!sters represented Germany in Tel Aviv, achieving a disappointing 25th place with only 24 points.
Do you think an internal selection will help Germany? Who and what would you like Germany to send next year? Let us know in the comments and on social media @ESCXTRA. Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates.
