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Frederik Pleitgen Biography
Frederik Pleitgen is a Senior International Correspondent based in CNN’s London bureau. He has brought a uniquely German perspective to CNN´s global audience since she joined the international news network. Pleitgen was CNN’s Berlin correspondent, delivering insight into the political, economic and cultural influences of this key European power between 2006 and 2014.
In both year 2009 and 2013 he played a pivotal role in CNN’s coverage of the German Bundestags-Elections, while in 2014 he reported on the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, bringing his own family’s experience of the event to bear in his coverage.
Additionally, he has extensively reported on the ongoing conflict in Syria, traveling to Damascus, Homs, Aleppo and many other places in the war town nation. Frederik was also the first international journalist to report from Damascus only days after chemical weapons struck rebel held areas in 2013 nearly setting off U.S. military intervention. In late 2016 he was also on hand in Aleppo when the city fell back into the hands of Syrian government forces .
Pleitgen was a key reporter during the unrest in the Arab world in 2011, reporting from Egypt as the revolution that eventually toppled the Mubarak government unfolded forming part of the team that won an Emmy for its live coverage of the protests in Cairo, and one of the first journalists to get inside the Libyan besieged city of Misrata.
In 2008 Pleitgen also travelled undercover to Myanmar, which was then ruled by a repressive Junta, several times to report on the aftermath of cyclone Nargis and in 2010 the flawed elections and release of the pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi.
He also regularly anchors CNN International’s flagship Amanpour show, standing in for Christiane Amanpour and interviewing various world leaders and other international newsmakers.
Major stories that Pleitgen has covered over the years have included the 2004 Asian Tsunami , the death of Pope John Paul II and subsequent election of the first German pope, Cardinal Ratzinger, and now Pope Benedict XVI. Pleitgen, who is fluent in German, English and French, reported from London during the July 2005 terrorist attacks and was dispatched to bring German audiences coverage of the tragic aftermath of both Hurricane Wilma and Katrina in the U.S.
Frederik Pleitgen Age
He was born in 1976 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany. He is 42 years old as in year 2018.
Frederik Pleitgen photos
Frederik Pleitgen Family
Pleitgen resides in Berlin. He is the son of Gerda Lichtenberg and Fritz Pleitgen the German journalist and former director of West German Broadcasting Corporation.
Frederik Pleitgen Education
He studied North American Studies at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-University in Bonn and at Free University Berlin, where he submitted his master’s thesis on traditions in American journalism. He also spent one year studying at the School of Journalism at New York University and he also received a fellowship for the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy in San Fernando Valley/USA in 2004 . Pleitgen was also awarded with the 2005 Arthur F. Burns Fellowship, which he spent at the International Centre for Journalists in Atlanta, Georgia.
Frederik Pleitgen Cnn
Frederick joined CNN in 2006 he covered from Paris, the aftermath of the controversial case of Charlie Hebdo shooting.
Apart from that, he has also hosted and appeared in various TV series and shows. This includes CNN Breaking News: Revolution in Egypt – President Mubarak Steps Down a TV Special, CNN Newsroom, At This Hour, etc. as a correspondent. He also hosted some shows and appeared in many like Erin Burnett OutFront, RTL Nachtjournal, Anderson Cooper 360°, etc. His other works include Legal View with Ashleigh Banfield a TV Series, Fareed Zakaria GPS a TV Series as well.
Pleitgen has also appeared in the 2012 movie Schutzengel as a TV reporter for CNN and the movie The Martian as a CNN Reporter.
Frederik Pleitgen Net Worth
He earns his wealth through his professional career of journalism. H has an estimated net worth around $1 million dollars.
Frederik Pleitgen Wife|Frederik Pleitgen Married
Until now pleitgen has never mentioned about his relationship or him having married to someone. This information is still put as a secret.
Frederik Pleitgen Speaking German|Languages|American Accent
He is a German journalist, his ethnicity is European.
Frederik Pleitgen Height
There is no information about his height and body weight.
Frederik Pleitgen Interview With Christine Mattauch
Mr. Pleitgen, you, as a German journalist, have been a reporter at CNN for ten years. Why do you work for American television?
I’ve always had an interest in American broadcasters. I lived in the USA for a time with my parents and also studied there, at New York University. In 2005, I helped out at CNN in Atlanta in the context of the Arthur F. Burns Fellowship, a German-American scholarship. That was precisely the time that Hurricane Katrina laid waste to the city of New Orleans. I got in my car and drove there alone, to report for the German broadcaster I was working for at the time, n-tv. I guess that impressed the staff at CNN; in any case a year and a half later they hired me.
How do German and American media differ?
I believe the greatest difference lies in the fact that Germans plan long term, whereas Americans make many snap decisions. That has its advantages in situations where things change quickly. And when certain events become big topics, Americans wade in with a great deal of resources. When the Paris attacks happened, for example, we got many staff there on the ground extremely quickly. Another difference is that responsibility is given to younger journalists early on. During the Iraq war we had some reporters there who were in their late 20s, early 30s – and some of them were in senior positions.
The impression often arises that the tone of reporting is different in the USA, and that includes the resputable media. Does news have to be “sold” differently compared to in Germany?
I believe the tone is more personal; Americans don’t have formal and informal forms of address for a start. In addition, the live element plays a larger role in American television and viewers therefore see the reporters bringing them the news more often. It is also a cultural tradition – German programmes tend to be somewhat formal, American ones more casual. Reporting must of course be reliable and mustn’t degenerate just because you want to be more casual. You need to strike the right balance.
Precisely in the USA people are talking a great deal about manipulated or so-called fake news. Does this topic concern you?
Very much so. Politicians bandy the term about, which I think is pretty dangerous, because the free press is a fundamental institution of the democratic state. Anyone who questions it indirectly attacks the stability of society as a whole. The media must defend themselves, go on the offensive against such accusations and rebut them. At the same time we must be strong in our research – mistakes are immediately decried as fake news. So, make as few mistakes as possible, but should they happen, respond accordingly: admit the error and correct it.
Are you personally affected by fake news accusations?
Unfortunately yes, particularly on social media. When I reported for CNN from Iran, for example, people claimed I wasn’t there at all and that my pictures weren’t real. Some of the attacks are very crude and way below the belt. For that reason I try to keep a low profile on social media and not let unproductive Twitter dialogues sap my energy.
You received the Hanns Joachim Friedrichs Award for outstanding journalistic achievement in 2017. The award is named for the renowned German journalist and long-time news anchor on German television who died in 1995. What does the award mean to you?
Hanns Joachim Friedrichs called for journalists never to be biased towards anything, even good things. I think that is very important today. The atmosphere is very tense, and all sides are trying to sway journalists. I report a great deal on controversial topics from Syria, Iran and Russia. Even academics or people who purport to take a scholarly approach in their work want to get you on their side. A journalist simply mustn’t do that. There are so many examples of things turning out to be different from what you initially thought. The only thing that helps is to remain objective, even if it’s not easy.
Another reason you won the award is because, according to the laudation, you “raise awareness of German realities in the USA”. How well can that succeed given a president who certainly does not shy away from criticizing Germany on Twitter?
Germany is highly respected. Many Americans look at us with envy and believe the country does a lot right. They long for less drama in government and a longer decision-making process. This view of Germany may be somewhat glorified, but in general serious political discourse enjoys a high standing.
You are currently based in London. How do you perceive the mood there in view of Brexit?
People who voted for Brexit are often somewhat defiant and are sticking to their guns, even though it is causing the country problems economically. But there are also Brits who wish they’d voted differently. Many people are only now realizing that there was no plan for how to manage the exit from the European Union and what will happen after. On top of which, the government in Westminster sought to strengthen ties to the USA parallel to Brexit, but in the UK Donald Trump is a controversial figure.
Would you like to return to Germany one day?
I can certainly imagine working in Germany again. But at the moment working for CNN is very exciting and I’d like to continue there for a while. Every year I try to do something I have never done before in my life. In 2017, I did a major report on the U.S. Air Force and for the first time witnessed the aerial warfare the Americans conducted in the Middle East. Leaving my comfort zone, risking something new, perhaps even something I’m afraid of: I’ve always managed that in the last ten years.