Netflix and ARD: Nov. 1 is D-D (Documentary-Documentary)-Day!

Two major new documentary series about the case come out simultaneously.

November 1, 2023 is going to be a huge day for those interested in the Söring case: Two major documentaries will come out at the same time.

In Germany, North German Broadcasting (NDR in German) has created a 3-part, 90-minute documentary entitled “Murder. Power. Media”. (Mord. Macht. Medien.) It will be broadcast nationwide on ARD from 22:45 to 00:25 (10:45 pm to 12:25 am). Here is part of the announcement in English:

Among celebrations from his supporters, [Söring] lands in Frankfurt am Main. He is back in Germany, his “homeland”, as he says. What follows is a carefully-planned meda tour through several talk shows, podcasts, and newspaper offices. Söring is in-demand; his message: “I’m the victim of a miscarriage of justice”. Yet that triggers journalists, former detectives, and experts who aim to prove the opposite.

From the time of his deportation, at the latest, the case of Jens Söring stands not just for an extremely cruel crime, but also for an astounding media career which Söring had been planning from the beginning. It is supported by a committed network of supporters…, including high-ranking figures from the worlds of politics, cultur, and the media.

This ARD True-Crime Series goes beyond the criminal case and shows mechanisms and motives which illuminate the continuing fascination this case provokes. The considerable role of the media will be a major focus of the investigation. The basis for this documentary series are court files, previously-unseen documents, and exclusive interviews with people who investigated the case or were inside Söring’s inner circle, but who distanced themselves from him after learning all the facts. The series will also feature supporters of Söring who stress the flaws in his conviction and, not least, Söring’s right to resocialization.

The Netflix series bears the English title “Soering v. Haysom: Till Murder do us Part”. In German it’s called “The Case of Jens Söring: Deadly Passion”. There was a German-language trailer for it, but that has since disappeared for some reason. The trailer suggested the series would take a he-said, she-said framing. I noticed interview cameos with the Small Town, Big Crime podcasters, which is refreshing. The trailer featured images of Söring apparently during an interview, but did not actually show any clips of him, or of me, for that matter.

November 1 is going to be a thrilling day for all of us. Something like 7 hours of fresh coverage of the case at once. We will surely learn some new stuff, but I doubt it will be game-changing. I gave interviews for both documentaries; we’ll have to see how much they use. If people are interested, I may do a live interactive chat while watching the German documentary and some scheduled “live” chats to watch the Netflix one. And of course, my book “Murderer or Martyr? Jens Söring, the Media, and the Truth” will also be out on November 1st, hopefully in both German and English. Stay tuned!