Above Alexanderplatz is Berlin's Needle. The television tower surveilled the city during East German times like a threatening eye; then its meaning changed after the Berlin Wall fell. Berliners now think of the tower as a giant disco ball flirting with the city lights, a symbol of sex, electronic music and youth culture. The changing meanings of The Needle are the inspiration for this blog. It documents the Berlin Renaissance today, mindful of a dramatic and terrifying history. Berlin is Europe's most exciting city, and The Needle is here to share.

Joseph Pearson is the editor of The Needle. Born in Canada, he moved to Berlin from New York City, where he taught at Columbia University. He is currently a lecturer at the New York University centre in Berlin. A cultural historian interested in memory, he received his doctorate from Cambridge University, UK, in 2001. His activities have included corresponding for the Canadian national newspaper, The Globe and Mail, publishing with academic journals such as European History Quarterly, and writing fiction and poetry.