Bibliographical-biographical Handbook of the historical German-Jewish Press from its beginnings (1755) to National Socialism (1943)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Michael Nagel
• Subject Area: Communication Sciences ; Modern and Contemporary History
• Term: since 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 325193317

As already stated in the first (2017) and the following (2020) application / subsequent application, the project aims a – as complete as possible – bibliographical-biographical handbook of the historical German-Jewish press from its beginnings (presumably 1670) to its end in National Socialism (1943), ready for publication. The main targets, in this regard, are to present this press, as an until now scarcely looked at part of the historical German press, a) in exact and reliable bibliographical terms, including relevant references and, if possible, holding libraries/archives/collections, b) to introduce every periodical, by a commentary and indices, within its historical context, i.e. describing its concerns, contents, functions, design and publishing history, all this in terms appropriate to allow, and encourage, further research. Furthermore, the editors, authors, publishers etc. of this press are to be named with short vitae, looking especially at their activities in the German-Jewish as well as the German press – this includes the numerous editing societies and institutions. Since the 1960s such a handbook is mentioned as a desideratum. Currently it is expected by quite a number of colleagues, who are acquainted with the project’s progress via cooperation, workshops, respective publications and a conference (see description/Beschreibung, 1.1.1) offered and organized by the project's staff, as a manifold and stimulating basis for new perspectives in in-depth research on the social, religious, cultural and economic history of German Jewry from the mid-17th century unto National Socialism. For access to the “historiographische[n] Mehrwert der deutsch-jüdischen Presse [historiographical surplus of the German-Jewish press]“ (Zimmermann 2023) this handbook will serve, so to speak, as the master key. The applicant asks for a further, and final, year of funding. This second, and last, prolongation is necessary for the successful completion of the project, i.e. the achieving of a manuscript of the handbook ready to publish, because the project work in the second funding period turned out to be much more time-consuming as assumed before. This was/is owing to a, once again, quantitative growth of the bibliographical as well as the biographical part (see 1.1.1.II). It is owing also to the, from the beginning, central goal to present this press always within its historical context: This took, for some subject areas and historical periods, significantly more time as expected (see 2.2.1.1.1.), but was/is inevitable for offering the reader an access to the “surplus value” (s.a.). Furthermore, it is owing to a progressive differentiation and systematization in allocating the indices for all of the ca. 1.150 periodicals (see 2.2.1.1.2). Also, as a complementary target, the handbook is to be introduced by a “History of the German-Jewish Press from its beginnings to 1943” in nuce (see 2.2.1.3.).

• DFG Programme: Research Grants