[4] In 1963, Pleitgen began working as a journalist at the German broadcaster WDR;[4] he started as a reporter for Tagesschau.

[2] His duties included reporting from Brussels and Paris covering the European Economic Community and NATO.

[5] From 1970, Pleitgen reported as ARD's foreign correspondent from Moscow, where he accompanied Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev on trips abroad.

[6] Under constant KGB surveillance,[7] he was the first Western journalist to have an interview with the General Secretary of the Communist Party.

[17] After leaving WDR in 2007, Pleitgen took over the management of the European Capital of Culture 2010 project in Essen (Ruhr.2010)[25] and officially retired in 2010.

[8] Considered one of the most influential German journalists and media makers,[2] Pleitgen interviewed Ronald Reagan, Erich Honecker, Egon Krenz, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Helmut Kohl.

[6] According to Pleitgen, the German broadcaster ARD had features of a state media in the early years, but emancipated later.

[29] Pleitgen was a supporter of Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik[26] and in conflict with the Christian Social Union in Bavaria.