Controversial book "Unfiltered" Thomas Gottschalk's controversial work flops

Fabian Tschamper

31.10.2024

Thomas Gottschalk also presented his new book "Unfiltered" at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Thomas Gottschalk also presented his new book "Unfiltered" at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
IMAGO / dts Nachrichtenagentur

Is the media hype surrounding Thomas Gottschalk's new non-fiction book just a clever PR strategy? Surprise: anyone who thought "Ungefiltert" would take the German book charts by storm is - so far - wrong. A fellow entertainer is doing much better.

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  • Thomas Gottschalk's new book "Ungefiltert" has attracted a lot of attention in the media and on talk shows, but only ranks seventh in the bestseller charts.
  • Alexei Navalny's posthumously published book "Patriot" and Elke Heidenreich's "Ageing" are currently at the top of the non-fiction charts, with high sales figures.
  • Compared to Gottschalk's bestseller "Herbstblond" from 2015, the current sales figures for "Ungefiltert" are significantly lower despite the PR frenzy.

He made it for a few days. Thomas Gottschalk, who openly suffers from no longer being able to reach the masses like in his best "Wetten, dass ...?" days, was the number one topic of conversation in the German media. Are you still allowed to say what you think as a 74-year-old entertainer? Should Gottschalk's finger exercises on the legs and backs of female show guests be condemned from today's perspective?

Gottschalk addresses questions like these in his third non-fiction book, "Ungefiltert. Confessions of someone who can't keep his mouth shut". It was published on October 16, accompanied by numerous talk show appearances by the late author and even more numerous debates in traditional and social media. As harsh as some of the criticism seemed to hit the show host, many suspected a foolproof PR strategy behind it. With so much media hype, surely the book would shoot to number one in the bestseller charts? Or would it?

Hape Kerkeling leaves Thomas Gottschalk far behind

It hasn't quite turned out that way - so far at least. If you look at the non-fiction charts published by "Börsenblatt", you will find "Ungefiltert" in seventh place in week two after publication. For the vast majority of non-fiction authors in the country, this would probably be a triumph. In Gottschalk's case, however, it is a little surprising that six non-fiction books appealed more to German readers last week.

The posthumously published book "Patriot" by Russian regime critic Alexei Navalny, who died in custody, is at the top of the list. According to Media Control figures, it sold almost 16,000 copies in calendar week 43. Elke Heidenreich's "Altern" followed in second place, with Gottschalk's fellow entertainer in third place: Hape Kerkeling's "Gebt mir etwas Zeit" sold almost 10,000 copies in week 43.

With 2826 copies sold, "Ungefiltert" did not quite keep pace. Media Control reports a total of 7803 units sold since its release two weeks ago. For comparison: Gottschalk's first book, his autobiography "Herbstblond" (Autumn Blonde) published in 2015, reached number one on the "Spiegel" bestseller list when it was published. According to Media Control, 163,858 hardcover and 24,353 paperback editions have been sold to date - without any of the stimulating topics and accompanying talk show uproars such as the recent one on "Kölner Treff".


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