Deutsches Rundfunkarchiv German Broadcasting Archive DRA

Overview

The German Broadcasting Archive (Deutsches Rundfunkarchiv; DRA) is a non-profit foundation jointly supported by the ARD (Working Group of Public Regional Broadcasters) and Deutschlandradio. It is Germany's oldest joint institution of public broadcasters, dedicated to preserving, documenting, and providing access to the audiovisual heritage of German radio and television spanning more than a century of broadcasting history.

History and Founding

The DRA was founded in 1952 as the Lautarchiv des Deutschen Rundfunks (German Radio Sound Archive), with its first seat at Hessischer Rundfunk in Frankfurt am Main. It was renamed the Deutsches Rundfunkarchiv in 1963. Following German reunification in 1990, the DRA assumed responsibility for integrating the radio and television archive holdings of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), including the Deutscher Fernsehfunk (DFF). In 1994 the Potsdam-Babelsberg site was established to house these East German materials, and since December 2000 this location has operated on the grounds of the Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (RBB). Since 2021, the DRA has also taken on a coordinating and advisory role to simplify research access across the archives of ARD and Deutschlandradio.

Collections and Holdings

The DRA holds more than 106,000 hours of digitised audio and video content, along with written documents, photographs, and artefacts including early sound carriers such as Edison cylinders and shellac records. Its primary collecting focus covers three eras: the Weimar Republic (1923–1933), the National Socialist period (1933–1945), and the radio and television of the German Democratic Republic (1945–1991). The Frankfurt am Main location houses sound documents, written records, photographic material on broadcasting before 1945, and a specialist library on broadcasting and media history. The Potsdam-Babelsberg location holds GDR television and radio programme archives, administrative records, and a specialist library on GDR broadcasting. Key holdings include complete runs of GDR series such as Der Schwarze Kanal, and early West German television experimental broadcasts. In 2011, key GDR broadcasting records were added to UNESCO's Memory of the World documentary heritage register.

Access and Usage

Researchers can access the DRA's online catalogue at dra.de, explore thematic portals, and access selected audio-visual materials through the ARD Mediathek and Audiothek. On-site research is available at the Potsdam-Babelsberg location by appointment, with viewing and listening rooms available. The DRA advises on research inquiries spanning multiple ARD and Deutschlandradio archives.