Why Lutz van der Horst is attracted to interviews with politicians

Lutz van der Horst, who often asks cheeky questions to politicians as a reporter for the ZDF satirical show “heute-show”, has only felt guilty once. “I’m actually pretty good at judging how far you should go and where the limit is. I think it only happened once that I thought afterwards: ‘Oh God. What did you ask? That was completely wrong,'” the 49-year-old told the German Press Agency.

This question was not visible in the finished article. “But I will definitely not say what the question was and who I asked it to.”

He still enjoys interviewing politicians. “The appeal is in breaking down the usual clichés and getting an unusual answer or reaction out of them. That’s a challenge because they are perfectly trained in rhetoric.”

The TV man from Cologne has now started the podcast “Nobody asks us” together with comedian Ilka Bessin (“Cindy from Marzahn”). Every Friday, the two answer questions that have already been asked to other celebrities.

As a respondent “more relaxed”

For van der Horst, this is a welcome change: “When I answer questions, I am much more relaxed because I cannot prepare. If I am the one asking the questions, there is usually a lot of work involved because I read up on the topic, find out about the person and think of some questions in advance.”

© dpa-infocom, dpa:240901-930-219280/1