Peter Frey

Peter Frey (born 4 August 1957) is a German journalist. He was editor-in-chief of ZDF from 1 April 2010 to September 2022.

Early life and education Frey was born on 4 August 1957 in Bingen am Rhein, Germany. After graduating from the Stefan-George-Gymnasium in Bingen in 1976, Frey performed community service and from 1978 studied political science, education and Spanish at the University of Mainz and as a scholarship holder of the Spanish Foreign Ministry in Madrid. His successor as head of the Berlin studio was Bettina Schausten.

As editor-in-chief, he introduced the new series ZDFzoom and ZDFzeit, and was committed to the development of the digital channel ZDFinfo and the broadcaster's online strategy. He is still present on the screen as a commentator of heute-journal. Since Peter Frey's election as editor-in-chief, Shakuntala Banerjee, Sophie Burkhardt, Benjamin Daniel, Frederic Huwendiek, and Miriam Steimer have served as program speakers for him.

Peter Frey is not a member of any political party. In journalistic circles, he is, like his predecessor Brender, close to the Social Democratic Party.

As an author, speaker and panelist, Peter Frey has commented on the topics of international relations, European integration, German domestic politics, German culture of remembrance and professional ethical questions in journalism and the development prospects of television.

He has expressed his positions on questions of credibility in journalism in articles for Die Zeit, the Süddeutsche Zeitung, and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Other engagement Frey has been a fellow at the Center for Applied Political Research at LMU Munich since 2006. In addition, Peter Frey is a member of the advisory board of the American Jewish Committee, an elected member of the Central Committee of German Catholics, and the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Körber Foundation.

Frey was on the advisory board of the Federal Academy for Security Policy. He published the essay "Die Rolle der Medien in internationalen Konflikten" In this essay, Frey criticizes the "controlled reporting" of the media and the instrumentalization of journalists for political purposes.

Personal life Peter Frey is married and has one daughter. He is a Roman Catholic.