Adi Kälin leaves the NZZ

"His political analyses and historical texts were always of the highest standard," says Daniel Fritzsche. The head of the Züri-Bund of the New Zurich Newspaper, regrets the departure of Adi Kälin extraordinarily. "Adi has enriched the Zurich department enormously with his profound knowledge of the mechanics of the city of Zurich - from historical to political."

Since 2008, Kälin has been an editor at the NZZ. During this time, he had worked through "the whole general store of the local, politics, culture or social". Again and again the high-rise buildings, the barracks, the Globus temporary building or the congress house. Even when it came to elections, the harbor crane, non-profit housing or the fight for a fairer electoral system in Limmat City, Kälin's name was always on the author's line. These were often not "great stories," but simple craftsmanship, says the 63-year-old: "5,000-line stories often daily, plus thousands of comments on everything that moved the city." It is therefore logical that Kälin was unable to win any journalism awards.

But the journalist, who was born in Küssnacht am Rigi, did have a few "hobby topics," as he calls them: Kälin was always passionate about history, photographic history, and also about the mountains. For example, he wrote about cholera in 1867 or the Russian flu, which was burned as an influenza figure at the Sechseläuten in 1890.

A typical photography story by Kälin, which, according to Daniel Fritzsche, struck a chord and found a record number of readers, was the article on a photo sensation find at the Bürkliplatz flea market.

Who on Adikaelin.ch will find more hobbyhorses of the soon to retire local journalist. There and elsewhere, you will continue to read from Kälin in the future. "I'm open to x-what, probably it will come down to something journalistic again." It's quite possible that he will write another book.

Four months left at the NZZ

Kälin got his start in journalism at the Luzerner Tagblatt. After that, he wrote for the Tagblatt der Stadt Zürich and then worked for the Tages-Anzeiger from 1992 to 2008. During these 16 years at the Tagi, he was, among other things, head of the Zurich city department and later also head of the local Zurich city split.

Now he will spend another four months working for the NZZ then it's officially over. He will miss his colleagues, but not so much the compulsory political program, as he revealed to Werbewoche.

In addition to his journalistic qualities, his supervisor Daniel Fritzsche especially appreciates the great composure he radiated: "For younger colleagues in particular, he was a kind of father figure in the department, always on hand with advice and support and bringing things down to earth."

Since it is unfortunately not possible to clone Adi Kälin, Fritzsche is now looking for a suitable successor for the longstanding NZZ-Employee. "It should just be an excellent journalist with a heart for Zurich."