Prokop, Waldner and Bruckenberger were appointed editors-in-chief, Pieh, Staudinger and Karabeg as deputies
Vienna (OTS) – Important personnel decisions at ORF:
ORF General Director Mag. Roland Weißmann has Sebastian Prokop and Inka Pieh as editor-in-chief and deputy editor-in-chief in the “News Teams” editorial department, Gabriele Waldner-Pammesberger and Christian Braun-Staudinger as editor-in-chief and deputy editor-in-chief in the “Multimedia Specialist Departments” editorial department, and Johannes Bruckenberger and Eva Karabeg were appointed as editor-in-chief and deputy editor-in-chief in the “Broadcast and Platform Teams” editorial department. All three editors-in-chief act equally, and the six appointees will take office today (December 1, 2023).
The tasks of the three editors-in-chief include planning, coordinating and producing reporting on politics, economics, chronicles and weather in current information programs on ORF 1, ORF 2, Ö1, Ö3 and FM4, in the radio programs that can be received nationwide, and in information offerings on online platforms of the ORF, in teletext and on social media platforms. Furthermore, the production of broadcast and online content from the areas mentioned and the editorial, technical and organizational coordination of federal state reporting for Austria-wide information broadcasts and online information offerings.
For ORF General Director Roland Weißmann, “the six newly appointed are not only undisputedly competent, but given their journalistic socialization, they also guarantee that the new management structure within ORF Information will be brought to life across all media and that the anachronistic boundaries between television, radio and online will be filled with life have been finally repealed.”
Editor-in-Chief “News Teams”
The area of responsibility includes the planning and production of current online information offerings on all online platforms of the ORF and on social media platforms, the current teletext and radio and television information programs, as well as the monitoring of picture agency material, social media sources and User-generated content, the verification and provision of this content. The responsibility also applies to triggering the alarm chain according to the alarm plan as well as preparing the initial offers in the event of breaking news. News gathering and data journalism also fall into this area.
Sebastian Prokop: “The ORF news formats are among the ORF’s most successful offerings. They reach millions of people every day. I am proud to take overall responsibility for this together with my deputy Inka Pieh. We guarantee objective, reliable and relevant news – live around the clock from Austria’s only multimedia 24/7 newsroom.”
Editor-in-Chief “Multimedia Specialist Departments”
The area of responsibility of the multimedia specialist departments in Germany, abroad, economy, chronicle and weather includes, among other things, the production of specialist and target group-specific broadcasts and online contributions with a particular focus on background reporting, detailed research and analysis for broadcasts and online offers to be designed and processed by broadcast and platform teams . Furthermore, the coordination of topics within the multimedia specialist departments as well as the coordination of EU reporting, weather offers and topics with the state studios. The areas of ORF correspondents and investigative journalism are also assigned to this area.
Gabi Waldner-Pammesberger: “I am very honored by the trust placed in me by the editorial team and management. It is an excellent basis for the editor-in-chief team to set the best possible course for the future of ORF information.”
Editor-in-Chief “Broadcast and Platform Teams”
The special area of responsibility includes planning and responsibility for the assigned programs or broadcast slots and online offers. In addition, the production of programs or online offers in accordance with the program and format profiles, including based on supplies from the multimedia specialist departments, the news teams and other main departments of the program management and the radio directorate. This area is also responsible for thematic coordination with the magazine programs and documentaries.
Johannes Bruckenberger: “ORF information is the largest, most important and most exciting leading medium in the country. Many of the best journalists in the country work here. It is a great honor if I can contribute to the team here so that ORF information will continue to enjoy a high level of credibility and trust in the future, play a leading role in digital transformation and maintain its position as a leading medium with a high level of audience acceptance in the secures and expands the digital world.”
Sebastian Prokop (CR ORF Newsteams)
The 49-year-old native of Innsbruck began his ORF career in 1993 as a trainee at Ö3. Until 1997 he was an editor, reporter and head of duty in the Tyrol regional studio, before returning to Ö3 in 1998, where he became deputy head of information in 1999 and head of Wort there in 2007. Prokop was Ö3 information boss until 2022. Most recently, he headed the new multimedia ORF news desk. Sebastian Prokop has completed further training in journalism and management training in Austria, Germany and the USA.
Inka Pieh (Deputy CR News Teams)
Pieh, who was born in St. Pölten in 1987, started her career as a journalist in 2008 in the teaching editorial department of ORF Radio Information. After her tri-media training as a radio, television and online journalist at the ORF Academy in 2011, she became an editor, news presenter and head of operations at Ö3. The studied anthropologist and trained business mediator was responsible for Ö3 special broadcasts, for example on the 2016 US presidential election and presented the Ö3 election journals for the 2019 National Council election. Most recently, Pieh was a correspondent in the ORF Washington office for three years and, among other things, reported live from the “Storm on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Gabriele Waldner-Pammesberger (CR Multimedia Departments)
The 54-year-old grew up in Carinthia. After a traineeship at the “Kleine Zeitung” and “Der Standard”, Waldner began her ORF career in 1996 as a news editor at Ö1 and FM4. In 1999 he switched to radio internal politics. In the following years she was also seen as a presenter on ORF television (“Press Hour”, “IM ZENTRUM”), and in 2006 she was the host of the “Summer Talks”. From 2002 to 2006 she was deputy head of radio internal policy before taking over moderation and deputy management of the TV “Report” from 2008 to 2012. Waldner then moved back to radio as head of Ö1 information and deputy editor-in-chief of ORF News Radio, of which she has been interim news editor-in-chief since March 2023. Waldner is also a member of the ORF Ethics Council.
Christian Braun-Staudinger (Deputy CR Multimedia Departments)
The 53-year-old Viennese started his ORF career in 2000 at the “Barbara Karlich Show”, from where he moved to “25 – Das Magazin” in 2004 and worked as an editor and later as head of duty. Also in 2004, he moved to the “ZIB” editorial team, first to the chronicles department, two years later to “ZIB” domestic policy, then to foreign policy. In the meantime he was part of the “ZIB 24” development team. In the start-up phase of ORF-1 News, he was the program planner and head of the “ZIB 24”, “ZIB 20” and “ZIB-News-Flash” service. At the beginning of 2010, Staudinger switched to “ZIB 2”. Since July 2012, Christian Staudinger has also been head of duty and program planner for “Zeit im Bild” at 7:30 p.m. In 2013 he reported as a correspondent from the ORF office in Washington. After his return, he became broadcast manager/editorial director of “Zeit im Bild” in 2019 and editor-in-chief of ORF.at in 2020.
Johannes Bruckenberger (CR broadcast and platform teams)
The 55-year-old Johannes Bruckenberger began his journalistic career at the “Salzkammergut Zeitung” and from 1994 he worked for the Austria Press Agency. Initially working as a freelancer in the media, education, research and chronicle departments, he became a media editor from 1998. In 2000, Bruckenberger became head of the service and, from 2004, deputy APA editor-in-chief. Head of the domestic policy department from 2016, he was appointed editor-in-chief of the APA in 2019. From 2005 to 2015, Bruckenberger was also a lecturer at the University of Vienna and at various technical colleges. He is also a co-founder and board member of the Initiative for Quality in Journalism. In 2019 and 2022 he was named Journalist of the Year in the Editor-in-Chief category.
Eva Karabeg (deputy CR broadcast and platform teams)
The 53-year-old Styrian started working for ORF in 1998 as a contributor in the Vienna regional studio. In 2001 she was promoted to head of duty and in 2003 to deputy broadcast manager of “Wien Today”, where she was ultimately responsible for broadcasting from 2009 to 2016. In 2016 she moved to “ZIB” internal politics, and she was also head of the “ZIB” service and “heute Mittag”. In 2018 Eva Karabeg became deputy editor-in-chief of ORF-2-Info, in 2021 she became the “ZIB” broadcast manager and finally in 2022 she became interim ORF News editor-in-chief. Karabeg is also a lecturer at the Institute for Journalism and Communication Studies in Vienna.