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Foodie Berlin
Joseph Pearson 08/05/201623/06/2018

Bad Tea in Berlin (Part Two)

  Bad tea. Berlin is full of it. And it’s time to point fingers at those bad beverages prepared badly

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Foodie Berlin
Joseph Pearson 23/04/201616/11/2021

French Food Trucks in Berlin

Why is it that so many French chefs are coming to Berlin? And why are they starting out with food trucks? Let’s

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Berlin Arts
Joseph Pearson 21/04/201623/06/2018

The Docufiction of Yony Leyser: a preview of Desire Will Set You Free

If you were on the Kreuzberg-Neukölln gay scene two Mays ago, you saw your regular haunts become a film set. Your

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Foodie Berlin
Joseph Pearson 14/04/201623/06/2018

Why Berlin is the Capital of Bad Tea

Although Berlin is quickly becoming a coffee mecca, it remains the capital of bad tea. British World War Two soldiers

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Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 15/01/201623/06/2018

Cologne Assaults: A Distorted and Dangerous Debate of Stereotypes

It’s too simple to explain the serious crimes against women in Cologne this past New Year’s eve by the assailants’

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Living in Berlin
Joseph Pearson 12/01/201623/06/2018

MOVING TO BERLIN: The Needle Guide 2016

The Needle has updated its Moving to Berlin Guide! Click here for the 2016 edition.   

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Foodie Berlin
Joseph Pearson 22/11/201523/06/2018

Beyond Michelin: The Berlin Guide for Foodies

The Michelin Guide doesn’t understand Berlin’s foodie scene. It is the bible for eating in France. But in Berlin they

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Opinion and Politics
Joseph Pearson 14/11/201523/06/2018

Don’t Blame Refugees for Paris

Islamic militants are responsible for what happened today in Paris, but remember that they are precisely what refugees arriving in Europe are running

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Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 29/09/201523/06/2018

Berlin’s Appalling Conditions at Refugee Registration Center LaGeSo

29 SEPT 2015, BERLIN—I spent all day today at the refugee registration centre, LaGeSo, on Turmstraße. Refugees tell me getting

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Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 28/09/201523/06/2018

How Long Will Germany Welcome Refugees? The View from Berlin

28.09.15 BERLIN––Yesterday, I went to a picnic, with approximately 1000 people, to welcome refugees to Berlin. It was organised by

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Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 27/09/201523/06/2018

Razor Wire and Refugees: What’s Happening Now in Berlin

  Across from their embassy in Berlin, Hungarian expats are unspooling razor wire littered with rags of clothing, a symbol of

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About the Author

 

Joseph Pearson is a writer and historian based in Berlin. His non-fiction portrait of Berlin was published in 2017. He published a second book, My Grandfather’s Knife, about how everyday objects tell World War Two stories, in 2022. His writing has appeared widely in the press, literary and academic journals, and has been translated into German, Italian, French, Arabic, and other languages. Born in Canada, he was educated at Cambridge University, UK, where he received his doctorate in history in 2001. He works at New York University, Berlin, and at the Barenboim-Said Akademie. Since 2008, he has written The Needle, which has become one of Berlin’s most popular blogs. For professional inquiries please contact his agency, Peters Fraser Dunlop, email him directly   joseph [AT] cantab.net, or visit his professional website: josephpearson.ca

What is The Needle?

The changing meanings of The Needle are the inspiration for these pages. Above Alexanderplatz is Berlin’s television tower. The Needle 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. This bi-weekly 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.

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