Who am I?
Franz Strasser is a Reporter and Video Journalist with BBC News in Washington, D.C.
He reports, produces, and edits original video stories for the BBC News website, the PBS television program ‘BBC World News America’, writes feature articles and assist with breaking news coverage.
He travels across the country as one-man-band, and in various combinations of cameraman, producer and editor. Since joining the BBC, he covered the Gulf Coast oil spill, the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, the US midterm elections, the changes in Eastern Germany 20 years after reunification, and the current state of immigration in a two-week trip across America.
In his prior role as Digital Producer/Reporter for ‘BBC World News America’, he provided original content and helped with the overall online presence and strategy of the program, launching the program’s Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr accounts, and utilizing Flickr and Delicious for team use.
Prior to joining the BBC in September 2009, Franz spent the summer at Thomson Reuters in New York City, where he was the multimedia intern for Reuters.com.
In May 2009, he received his Master of Science with honors from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York City. He was awarded a Pulitzer Travel Fellowship for graduating at the top of the class, and the Joan Konner Award for Best Broadcast Student.
Back in Germany, Franz studied American Studies and Economics at Humboldt Universität in Berlin, where he received his Bachelor of Arts.
In 2005, he was one of the first people in his country to publish his own podcast. Together with a friend, he created, produced and hosted a monthly sports podcast. A daily version of it was produced and featured for a Coca-Cola sponsored website during the World Cup 2006.
After the tournament, the podcast became a twice-weekly web feature for Germany’s biggest regional newspaper and was at times the most downloaded sports podcast in the country, featuring many known sports journalists as its guests.
Franz resides in Washington, DC and is a big fan of American sports, particularly college football.
What do I offer?
Most of the time I work on feature stories that I came up with myself. From the first phone call to the final interview on camera, I know where to find good stories and how tell them.
I’ve produced multiple TV packages working alongside experienced BBC TV and radio reporters.
I end up editing 90 percent of the stories I work on myself. I have experience with Final Cut Pro, Avid and Motion and can edit a 3-minute feature story with an existing script in less than an hour.
Using social networks to tell my story and to keep the audience along for the ride is a must-do that I enjoy very much.
Testimonials
Listed below are actual quotes from professors at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. These are people that saw me day in and day out for weeks (sometimes months) at a time. They are experienced journalists and veterans from NPR, NBC News and ABC News.
Franz has the gift of natural talent but he does not take it for granted. He is always working. He is determined to go beyond the obvious and become a first-rate reporter and producer. It is a pleasure to work with him and watch him grow and succeed.
Marty Goldensohn
As he goes forward, Franz has the potential to make his mark in any number of areas of journalism. Perhaps he will gravitate to new media, as he already has a grasp of what it takes to communicate successfully in that medium; if so, I look forward to seeing him being in the first rank of those who develop the new media’s potential to do serious journalism.
Bill Wheatley
Franz was generous with his time and his talent. He is a natural leader who leads quietly. He never gets ruffled. He taps into his curiosity and returns with good stories whether as a one-man band or as a partner.
Rhoda Lipton
