Dr. Michael Freund is head of the media department at Webster University Vienna (affiliated with Webster St. Louis) and writer and editor at the Viennese daily Der Standard. He studied psychology and sociology in Vienna, Heidelberg and at Columbia University, N.Y. (Ph.D. in 1978). After returning to Vienna, he worked on “Marienthal 1930 – 1980”, the follow-up of a classic sociological study of unemployment. He contributed to Austrian Public Radio ORF as writer and producer and started teaching at Webster in 1984.
He was responsible for the weekend supplement of Der Standard from 1989 to 2004 when he assumed the media department position. His main interests include media and cross-cultural comparisons, especially between the United States and Europe. He recently published journal articles and a book chapter on the political and social significance of the Doonesbury comic strip. At Der Standard, he continues to write primarily on cultural matters.