Jan Hofer
Ex- “Tagesschau” spokesman does not see himself as an influencer
Jan Hofer achieved eighth place in “Let’s Dance”.
© imago images / Future Image
After the end of the “Tagesschau”, Jan Hofer took a new path. But he doesn’t want to become an influencer, he explains in a podcast.
On December 17, 2020, Jan Hofer (69) symbolically took off his tie at the end of his last “Tagesschau” presentation after 35 years. Since then, the former chief spokesman has undergone a real change. “Let’s Dance” participation, TikTok videos and Instagram posts – you could think that the 69-year-old wants to retire as an influencer. Hofer does not see himself as an influencer, as he explains in the BR podcast “follow4follow – the influencer podcast” with Vreni Frost (38). “For me it is a means of communication to get in contact with people with whom I would never have come into contact before.”
It is important to him to use social media platforms such as Instagram to capture the opinion of others. “If you are a media person, you have to keep your finger on the pulse,” explains Hofer. Would he ever accept requests for cooperation? “I turned them all down. As a journalist you just have to be independent,” he says. At “Tagesschau” times, the former spokesman was even prohibited by law from advertising a product. He also wanted to keep private matters to himself. “That is a very fine line,” says Hofer. He even received death threats in the past. No wonder if you have twelve million viewers every day, says Hofer. “You can’t assume that everyone will like you.”
Jan Hofer does not see the influencer business as sustainable
According to Jan Hofer, Tagesschau spokespersons and influencers have one thing in common: “They have to be rampant sows.” If you don’t have a certain kind of exhibitionism in you, you shouldn’t become a “Tagesschau” spokesman or influencer, says Hofer.
In his opinion, the influencer business is a “time-bound phenomenon”. He compares it to trash talk shows from the 2000s and trash reality shows like “Love Island”: “That will be told out at some point. I think it’s similar on social media.
“My ‘Let’s Dance’ participation was strange for many”
The fact that he was so active on social media after his “Tagesschau” -Aus – according to his own statement, however, only about ten minutes a day – initially irritated many people around him. It was similar with his participation in the RTL dance show “Let’s Dance”. “That was strange for many,” recalls Jan Hofer. But for him the participation was like a release from what he had been doing for 35 years. “That was very important for me personally. A lot of people didn’t understand that, but they don’t have to either.”
After his “Tagesschau” farewell, Jan Hofer will host a new news program on RTL from August. “To be offered such a challenge again in life is not something you often get. That’s why I hit it,” he explains the step. Jan Hofer is not afraid that his decisions could deny him seriousness. “I am considered very serious. But there can be a cheerful appearance behind it. I live very happy and very happy and I don’t want to hide that anymore.”