Margarethe Schreinemakers

Margarethe Schreinemakers (born 27 July 1958) is a German television presenter, talk show host and journalist.

Life Schreinemakers was born in Krefeld and studied sociology at the University of Bonn. She works as television presenter and journalist in Germany. She presented on German broadcaster WDR Aktuelle Stunde and Extratour. From 1988 to 1991 she was talk show host for NDR Talk Show. From 1992 to 1997 she presented "Schreinemakers live" on German broadcasters Sat.1 and RTL. Several other talk shows followed during the next years. Schreinemakers has two children. From 1986 to 1988 she lived together with German television presenter Jürgen von der Lippe. In March 2009 Schreinemakers had a heart attack. In 2011, she lived together with Jean Marie Maus.

1996 Tax Dispute and Broadcast Termination

Background and Network Tensions By the mid-1990s, the weekly show Schreinemakers Live, which at that time was aired on the private German television channel Sat.1, had become one of the country's most watched and commercially successful programs. Known for its emotive style and mix of human interest and taboo subjects, the show secured Schreinemakers extensive editorial authority and high compensation (around 110,000 Deutsche Mark per episode).

In October 1993, Schreinemakers conducted a high-profile interview with Karin Waigel, the former wife of Federal Minister of Finance Theo Waigel, amidst their public divorce.

Aftermath and significance The abrupt termination of Schreinemakers Live on live television is regarded as one of the most prominent incidents in post-war German television history. While it demonstrated the limits of editorial independence versus channel authority, the surrounding media backlash and tax investigation substantially harmed Schreinemakers' public standing before her eventual move to RTL in 1997, after fulfilling her expiring contract with Sat.1.

At RTL, Schreinemakers failed to replicate the massive ratings and cultural impact of Schreinemakers Live with her new show, that was named Schreinemakers TV for the channel. The tax dispute in 1996 had severely affected Schreinemakers' public image. The perception of financial maneuvering conflicted with her role as an advocate for the ordinary people and emotional causes. Viewership declined steadily through the year of 1997, falling well short of RTL's internal benchmarks and commercial expectations.

When a format revision also failed to bring about the hoped-for turnaround, RTL CEO Helmut Thoma decided to discontinue the program, initially planned for three years, early after just one year with the final episode of Schreinemakers TV aired on December 18, 1997. The channel had to compensate for the cancellation of 26 agreed episodes with a payment of 18 million Deutsche Mark. The cancellation marked the definitive end of Margarethe Schreinemakers' era as the dominant prime-time talk show host on German commercial television.

Awards Bambi for Schreinemakers live Goldene Kamera for Schreinemakers live