Looking over a
TV guide for Germany, as is commonplace the two nationwide public television networks there will be providing continuous overnight coverage of the election results again this time around, with
ZDF beginning at 11:50 PM (5:50 PM Eastern) with
Die Nacht der Entscheidung ("The Night of the Decision") and
ARD/Das Erste starting a little bit later at 12:15 AM (6:15 PM Eastern) with
US-Wahl 2012 - Die Wahlparty im Ersten ("US Vote 2012 - The Results Party on The First," which as a side note, refers to the commonly used name of the network, the first national television network in Germany; ZDF was the second national network and its official name
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen ["Second German Television"] is often shortened to just "The Second" on-air and in conversation].
If the "party" on Das Erste is like the program I was able to watch through live streaming in 2008, the coverage will indeed probably take the form of a decidedly festive, party-like atmosphere. In 2008, election coverage was broadcast from some sort of public square or meeting place, with a lot of American expats and interested Germans gathered around the news anchors as all the results came in. I distinctly remember the crowd cheering and going wild whenever a state was called for Obama, and booing, groaning, or remaining mostly silent when a state was called for McCain. Imagine the criticism an American network would get if any of them had similar coverage.
Anyway, starting at 1:00 AM (7:00 PM Eastern), RTL, the biggest private broadcast network in Germany, will get into the action and begin simulcasting sister n-tv, a 24 hour news network equivalent to CNN and in fact partially owned by CNN parent Time Warner.
The TV listings I linked to also show programming available in some neighboring countries. In the case of Austria, national public broadcast network ORF 2 will start coverage with
Die Entscheidung ("The Decision") at 12:20 AM (6:20 PM Eastern). In Switzerland, live coverage in German will be provided on public broadcaster SF 1 beginning at 11:45 PM (5:45 PM Eastern) and run nonstop all the way to 9:00 AM (3:00 AM Eastern), according to
this trailer, in German. National public broadcasters RTS Deux and RSI La 1 will also be providing nonstop election coverage to the French and Italian speakers of Switzerland, respectively.
Finally, in the Netherlands, election coverage will start at 11:00 PM (5:00 PM Eastern) on public television network Nederland 2 and will move over to Nederland 1 at 11:55 PM (5:55 PM Eastern) for the remainder of the night and early morning. Although there is a high likelihood a live stream will be provided online of this coverage, viewers in the United States with Ku FTA satellite systems will also be able to tune in via BVN, an international network programmed by the national broadcasters of the Netherlands and Dutch-speaking Belgium. This network is available free in the United States on the satellite SES 1 at 101°W, though, of course, one will have to know Dutch in order to fully understand what's being said.
