Every broadcaster has different expectations. The Pitch Doctor's Format Knowledge Base contains detailed profiles for 59 broadcasters across 22markets. from editorial tone to exposé structure to what they explicitly don't want.
98 of 98 formats
Abc 2020
United StatesRecent productions
20/20: The Murder of Laci Peterson (2017) · 20/20: Kidnapped by a Cult (2023) · 20/20: The Menendez Brothers (2024)
Editorial tone
Gripping, emotional, accessible. ABC 20/20 tells true-crime stories and investigative reports for a broad network audience. The tone is dramatically tight — every episode is structured like a thriller
Recent productions
Four Corners: The Killing Season (2015) · Four Corners: Cash Cows (Internationale Studenten, 2019) · Four Corners: Big Deal (Politische Spenden, 2022)
Editorial tone
Incorruptible, thorough, authoritative. Four Corners is Australia's longest-running and most influential investigative TV format — on air since 1961. Tone is serious, factual, evidence-based. The prog
Aljazeera Fault Lines
InternationalRecent productions
Fault Lines: Police Brutality in America (2020) · Fault Lines: The Eviction Machine (2021) · Fault Lines: Standing Rock (2017)
Editorial tone
Critical, systemic, counter-hegemonic. Fault Lines is Al Jazeera's investigative format with exclusive focus on the USA — America viewed through the lens of an international broadcaster. The tone is a
Aljazeera Witness
InternationalRecent productions
Witness: Silas (Anjali Nayar, 2017) · Witness: My Mother's Sari (2022) · Witness: The Struggle for Water (2023)
Editorial tone
Human, independent, Global South perspectives. Al Jazeera Witness shows documentaries that tell stories the Western mainstream ignores. Tone is empathetic and respectful — protagonists tell their own
Recent productions
All or Nothing: Manchester City (2018) · Bosch: The Garden of Dreams (Jose Luis Lopez-Linares, 2016) · Lucy and Desi (Amy Poehler, 2022)
Editorial tone
Premium, diverse, globally oriented. Amazon Prime Video invests increasingly in high-quality documentary films and documentary series. Tone varies widely by genre — from intimate sports documentaries
Apple Tv Documentary
StreamingRecent productions
STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie (Davis Guggenheim, 2023) · Prehistoric Planet (Jon Favreau, 2022-2023) · Tiny World (2020)
Editorial tone
Cinematic, prestige-oriented, visually perfectionist. Apple TV+ produces the most visually ambitious documentaries in streaming — every frame must be a photograph. Tone is ambitious but accessible — n
Ard Weltspiegel
GermanyRecent productions
Weltspiegel: Ukraine — Leben im Krieg · Weltspiegel: Indiens vergessene Kinder · Weltspiegel: Brasilien — Kampf um den Regenwald
Editorial tone
Reporter-driven, cosmopolitan, substantive. The correspondents on the ground are the face of the programme. Gripping images, personal encounters, contextualizing analysis. Never superficial, but not a
Ard Report Muenchen
GermanyRecent productions
Report Muenchen: Milliardengrab Maut · Report Muenchen: Bildungsmisere — Warum Bayerns Schulen kaempfen · Report Muenchen: Pflegenotstand auf dem Land
Editorial tone
Exposing, thorough, factual-critical. Report Muenchen investigates with Bavarian thoroughness and national-level ambition. Fact-based, clearly structured, no polemics. Host: Christian Nitsche. Tone is
Recent productions
Die Story im Ersten: Wirecard — Die Milliarden-Lüge · Die Story im Ersten: Die Cum-Ex-Files · Die Story im Ersten: Kampf um die Wahrheit
Editorial tone
Journalistically grounded, narratively dense. Major societal themes with clear perspective, but fair. Quality journalism with cinematic storytelling power. Can be uncomfortable.
Ard Fakt
GermanyRecent productions
Fakt: Betrug im Handwerk — Wenn der Klempner abzockt · Fakt: Unsichere Spielplaetze — Gefahr fuer Kinder · Fakt: Energiekosten — Wer zahlt die Rechnung?
Editorial tone
Close to citizens, everyday-oriented, exposing. Fakt investigates close to people's daily lives. Less capital politics, more lived experience. What does policy mean concretely for citizens? Consumer t
Ard Panorama
GermanyRecent productions
Panorama: Die Cum-Ex-Files · Panorama: Rechte Netzwerke in der Polizei · Panorama: Pflegenotstand — Wenn Profit vor Menschen geht
Editorial tone
Sharp, critical, investigative. Panorama exposes, uncovers, names names. No diplomatic tone — direct confrontation with those responsible. Thoroughly researched, legally watertight. The viewer should
Ard Kontraste
GermanyRecent productions
Kontraste: Rechte Netzwerke in Ostdeutschland · Kontraste: Berliner Clan-Strukturen · Kontraste: Geheime Absprachen im Bundestag
Editorial tone
Critical, high-contrast, provocative. Kontraste confronts political claims with reality — hence the name. Undercover investigations, scandal exposure, contrasting perspectives. Berlin directness and e
Ard Report Mainz
GermanyRecent productions
Report Mainz: Milliardengeschaeft Pflege — Wer profitiert? · Report Mainz: Mietwucher — Wie Konzerne den Markt beherrschen · Report Mainz: Bildungsluecke — Warum Schulen scheitern
Editorial tone
In-depth, exposing, tenacious. Report Mainz wants to find the "truth behind it". Thorough research that goes beyond the surface. Factual in tone, but uncompromising on substance. Pieces dig into struc
Ard Monitor
GermanyRecent productions
Monitor: Die Macht der Algorithmen · Monitor: Steuervermeidung — Wie Konzerne den Staat betruegen · Monitor: Pflegebetrug — Milliarden fuer Phantompatienten
Editorial tone
Hard-hitting research, occasionally satirical edge. Monitor doesn't pull punches. Investigative down to the detail, with clear editorial stance. Abuses not just named but documented with evidence. Som
Arte Abenteuer Der Menschheit
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Die großen Entdecker — Auf den Spuren von Marco Polo · Das Geheimnis der Kelten · Die Seidenstraße — Auf den Spuren alter Handelswege
Editorial tone
Epic, narrative, personified. Grand human history made tangible through individual fates. Marveling at the achievements of past civilizations, but never romanticizing. Spectacular in staging, grounded
Arte Documania
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Romy Schneider — Die zwei Gesichter einer Frau · David Bowie — Der Mann, der die Welt veränderte · Helmut Newton — Frames from the Edge
Editorial tone
Accessible, narrative, character-driven. The personality at the centre — their life, contradictions, impact. Neither hagiographic nor investigative exposé. Respectful but honest. New images and new pe
Arte Donnerstagsdoku
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Tchernobyl — Die Nacht, die alles veränderte · Colonia Dignidad — Aus dem Innern einer deutschen Sekte · Flick — Die Geschichte eines deutschen Vermögens
Editorial tone
Emotional, story-driven, character-driven. In contrast to the analytical Tuesday history slot, this is about experiencing, not understanding. High popularity, primetime-ready. Stories that move, surpr
Arte Entdeckungen
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Im Reich der Koguis — Der magische Río Buritaca · Von Menschen und Kuhfladen · Der unbekannte Atlantik — Buckelwale vor Westafrika
Editorial tone
Immersive, sensory, narrative. The viewer should BE THERE, not have something EXPLAINED. Television language that creates images in the mind. Short sentences. Active verbs. Wondering, but not naive. S
Arte Geopolitik
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Die Macht der Geheimdienste · Chinas neue Seidenstraße — Masterplan für eine neue Weltordnung · Erdogans Traum — Die Türkei zwischen Europa und Asien
Editorial tone
Analytical, factual, contextualizing. Explain political and geopolitical connections, don't emotionalize. Deliver historical background and international comparisons. The analytical perspective is par
Arte Geschichte
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Krieg der Träume — 1918-1939 · Europas Muslime — Geschichte und Gegenwart · Wer hat Angst vor Alice Schwarzer?
Editorial tone
Analytical, contextualizing, serious. History as key to understanding the present. Sober, but never dry. Source-based, with room for witnesses and personal memory. Nuanced in presentation, no black-an
Arte Grosser Dokumentarfilm
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Kreuzweg — Stations of the Cross · Ai Weiwei — Human Flow · Buena Vista Social Club
Editorial tone
Cinematic, auteur-driven, distinctive. ARTE's documentary flagship. Exceptional dramaturgy and personal signature. Wide thematic range — from the intimate to the geopolitical. Cinematic in the best se
Arte History Light
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Geheimnisvolle Orte · Krieg und Holocaust — Der deutsche Abgrund · Die Europa-Saga
Editorial tone
Narrative, accessible, not academic. History told through stories.
Arte Popkultur
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Summer of Soul · Die Geschichte des Hip-Hop · Mythos Concorde — Überschall und Absturz
Editorial tone
Emotional, provocative, entertaining. Popular and mass culture since the 1960s. Character-driven — portraits of icons and movements. Celebrates pop culture without being uncritical. Energetic, visuall
Arte Re
ARTE (EU)Recent productions
Re: Pflegekräfte am Limit · Re: Wohnen in der Krise · Re: Europas junge Farmer
Editorial tone
Protagonist- and antagonist-driven. Subjective, against the grain. Visually strong with closed narrative arc. European themes told through concrete examples. Solution perspective — not just showing pr