Topics to research in Berlin

The media has certainly affected all of our lives at some point or the other. Each day we are bombarded with all sorts of information from newspapers, television, radios, magazines, books, and the Internet. I am sure all of us have noticed that a lot of times we are given contradictory information. I know that I have had many instances where a lot of the things I have learned or observed throughout my life do not match up with what I read or see on TV. The role of the media is indeed a significant one. It has a huge impact in our lives. For Berlin, I am very much interested in analyzing the media’s influence on both East and West Berliners. How was the wall depicted in newspaper and on T.V for the German people? How much control does the government have over the information released. If there was propaganda, how was it used? Did the average family listen to the radio and keep up with the news? How did the journalists depict the wall in? What kind of euphemisms was used? If this were the alter, the objects I would put in this alter would be a pen, paper, dictionary, camera, photos, telephone, remote control, television set.
Another topic I was interested in for Berlin is learning more about immigrants such as the large Turkish community that resides in Germany. After the chaos of World War II, were there a lot of people from other minority groups living in Berlin? I would like to learn about their experiences. I know that we talk about Berliners and we separate those living in the east and those in the west. I keep hearing about vast differences between the two groups but I am curious about what defines a “Berliner”. Is someone born and raised in the city of Berlin and whose ancestors was German? Were there Asians, Middle Eastern, Americans, and other ethnicities that also spent their whole lives in Germany and witnessed the putting up and taking down of the Berlin Wall? Does their experience differ from those who are German? Besides the Wall, what other hardships did they go through and what helped them survive it all? I would put in this alter a pair of old shoes, clothing, books, family photos, letters, passports, birth certificates, and family tree.