MAIKE BACKHAUS (she/her), born in Königswinter in 1990, is an investigative journalist and author. She studied directing and screenwriting at the Academy of Media Arts in Cologne and then completed an internship in business journalism. Since then, she has been combining journalistic research with dramaturgical development.
Her journalistic work focuses on systemic abuse of power—for example, in the film industry, professional sports, and the music industry—as well as topics such as structural violence and migration. She publishes for DER SPIEGEL, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Welt am Sonntag, CORRECTIV, and STERN, among others; her research has been picked up internationally by media outlets such as The Guardian and The New York Times.
For DER SPIEGEL, she developed the investigative podcast "NDA: The Kasia Lenhardt File," for which she led the research and was the author. With over three million listeners, the podcast became one of the most successful storytelling podcasts in Germany. The research sparked widespread social debate and prompted the public prosecutor's office to launch new investigations. Maike Backhaus was named "Journalist of the Year" in 2023 and 2024 for her work.
The jury stated: "With her investigation into conditions on Til Schweiger's film set, Maike Backhaus has raised an issue that could change the industry. Her coverage of the Rammstein case and her involvement in reconstructing the refugee drama in Pylos also demonstrate the breadth of her investigative skills – and the accuracy of her investigative instincts."
Darüber hinaus war sie für drei verschiedene Recherchen für den Reporterpreis nominiert und stand zweimal auf der Shortlist für den Stern-Preis sowie für den Impact Award. Ihre letzte Recherche „Chillt mal, hier wurde niemand vergewaltigt“ wurde im Erscheinungsjahr zur erfolgreichsten investigativen Geschichte des Stern.
In addition to her journalistic work, Maike Backhaus develops podcasts, documentary formats, and fictional film and series projects.
She made her debut as a co-writer in fiction with the ZDF series adaptation "Zwei vernünftige Erwachsene, die sich mal nackt gesehen haben" (Two Sensible Adults Who Have Seen Each Other Naked), alongside showrunner and writer Anika Decker and directed by Sebastian Schipper. In 2026, the series received €800,000 in funding from the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, the highest amount awarded that year.
After working for ZDF in Los Angeles for a year and a half, she now lives and works in Berlin.
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