Skip to content
The Needle: Berlin

  • —> Guide for Moving to Berlin
  • Privacy
  • Contact
Berlin Arts
Joseph Pearson 25/11/201423/06/2018

Street Art, on City Streets

Bear with me and figure out the riddle. If you’ve ever moved out of a rented apartment here in Berlin,

Read More
Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 17/11/201423/06/2018

How Dangerous is Berlin?

‘The problem is the false sense of safety that hangs over this city’, I tell the police officer, and he agrees

Read More
Berlin History
Joseph Pearson 08/11/201423/06/2018

Berlin is Still Divided, 25 Years After the Fall of the Wall

In the news, there will be plenty of celebrating the anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall. But for many

Read More
Berlin and German Politics
Joseph Pearson 06/11/201423/06/2018

The Snowden Premiere in Berlin, and Why Citizenfour Was Made in this City

Tonight was the Berlin premiere of Laura Poitras’s film about Edward Snowden, Citizenfour. Before the director was invited to the

Read More
Living in Berlin
Joseph Pearson 03/11/201423/06/2018

Berlin’s Vietnamese Community, and the Dong Xuan Center

Getting to the Dong Xuan Center means seeing how big and diverse Berlin can be. Taking the M8 tram line out

Read More
Living in Berlin
Joseph Pearson 13/10/201423/06/2018

Turks but not Berliners?

I’m writing today because of a flabbergasting interview with a linguistic researcher from the Berlin Technical University that appeared in

Read More
Gay and Queer Berlin
Joseph Pearson 06/10/201423/06/2018

Dumb or Malicious?: The Grindr Installation in Kreuzberg

The Dutch artist Dries Verhoeven’s pop-up action, ‘Wanna Play? Love in Times of Grindr’,  has been brought to a close after

Read More
Berlin Arts
Joseph Pearson 29/09/201423/06/2018

Goodbye to Berlin? La JohnJoseph’s ‘Trial Separation’ and his New Novel.

Berlin’s beloved performance artist and novelist, La JohnJoseph (also known as the ‘boy hero of pop’ Alexander Geist), has left Berlin

Read More
Opinion and Politics
Joseph Pearson 31/08/201423/06/2018

How Worried Should We Be About Russia?

31.08.2014 From Berlin, Russia is a 7-hour drive. The Ukraine is only a little farther by car. And sometimes I

Read More
Blog Posts on The Needle
Joseph Pearson 24/08/201425/08/2014

Welcome back from the Summer! The Needle Fall Preview

Where has the summer gone? Cool temperatures, that hint of the autumnal, bringing a jacket for the evenings, students returning

Read More
Places in Berlin
Joseph Pearson 29/07/201423/06/2018

36 Hours in Berlin (and not a minute more)

Did you ever wonder at the intentions of tourists who come to Berlin as voyeurs to the horrors of the

Read More
  • ← Previous
  • Next →

Explore The Needle

  • Places in Berlin
  • Berlin History
  • Living in Berlin
  • Berlin and German Politics
  • Opinion and Politics
  • Berlin Arts
  • Foodie Berlin
  • Gay and Queer Berlin
  • Trips from Berlin
  • Blog Posts on The Needle

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.

Never miss a post!

If you'd like to sign up to be notified by email when there's a new post on The Needle, you can do so here.
Loading

Recent Comments

  • Ronnie Gonzalez on Why so many Germans Dislike Spicy Food
  • Berlinblog.dk on What’s Changed in Berlin in a Decade? Ten Years of ‘Moving to Berlin’
  • Suzy on Revolt on the Admiralbrücke, Kreuzberg
  • Elain on The Rise and Fall of Berliner Schnauze
  • Joseph Pearson on Turks but not Berliners?
  • Steph on Turks but not Berliners?
  • RudyTrudy on The Rise and Fall of Berliner Schnauze
  • Partitions & Resonances on A Secret Plan in Rix Café
  • Joseph Pearson on What’s Changed in Berlin in a Decade? Ten Years of ‘Moving to Berlin’
  • Max on What’s Changed in Berlin in a Decade? Ten Years of ‘Moving to Berlin’

Berlin Links

  • Architecture in Berlin A blog about buildings in the city
  • Berlin Poche Berlin en français!
  • Boulezian Classical Music Blog, with much on Berlin
  • Cabaret Berlin Exploring the entertainment world of Weimar Berlin
  • Expats Blog compendium of expats’ blogs
  • German Way Resources for the German-speaking lands
  • Il Mitte Online Magazine about Berlin in Italian
  • Kreuzberged Xberg–A Love and Hate Relationship
  • Neuköllner.net (German language) Nifty Neukölln weekend round-up
  • Sand: Berlin Literary Journal A literary journal based in Berlin
  • Slow Travel Berlin Meander through the city…
  • Sugarhigh: Design, Eat, Love Berlin
  • Then We Take Berlin Off-beat Berlin Blog
  • Überlin tips on the best places
  • Wednesday Chef Berlin Foodie Blog

Archives

Copyright © 2025 The Needle: Berlin. All rights reserved.
Theme: ColorMag by ThemeGrill. Powered by WordPress.