Mark Strassmann
CBS News
Mark Strassmann is a CBS News correspondent based in Atlanta.
Since joining CBS News in 2001, Strassmann has covered major domestic and international stories, primarily for the “CBS Evening News.” Strassmann broke the story of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teenager who was gunned down in Sanford, Florida, by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman. Strassmann also provided extensive coverage of Zimmerman’s trial. Additionally, he reported on the BP oil spill for four months, Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, the Terry Schiavo right-to-die story, church burnings in the South, the shuttle program, Colorado wildfires and Texas floods, the raising of the Hunley submarine, the Worldcom accounting debacle, the aftermath of September 11 and the trials of aging Ku Klux Klan members in the Birmingham church bombing. He has also made multiple trips to Iraq since 2003.
Strassmann was the CBS News embedded correspondent with the 101st Airborne, reporting from the frontlines for seven weeks as U.S. forces swept from Kuwait into Iraq. He was the first television correspondent worldwide to break the news of the fragging incident within that unit. Strassmann was staying in the tent just behind the one in which two U.S. servicemen were killed in the attack and reported live from Iraq soon after it happened. He also covered the fall of Haitian President Aristide, among other major international stories.
Previously, Strassmann was a national correspondent for NBC News Channel, the network’s affiliate news service, in its Atlanta bureau (1997-2001). He also contributed reports to “Today” and other NBC broadcasts. Before that, Strassmann was assigned to NBC News Channel’s Miami bureau (1995-97). During that time, he reported extensively in the United States and abroad on major stories, including the Branch Davidian standoff near Waco, the Columbine school shootings, a total of eight Democratic and Republican National Conventions, the Atlanta Olympic Games, the Elian Gonzalez story, the Pope’s trip to Cuba, Princess Diana’s funeral, the 50th anniversary of D-Day and the 2000 Bush-Gore election story in Florida.
Prior to that, Strassmann was a reporter for WFLA-TV Tampa (1987-95), WTVT-TV Columbus, Ohio (1985-87), KMOL-TV San Antonio (1985) and WSAZ-TV Charleston, W. Va. (1982-85). He began his career as an associate producer at WCVB-TV Boston (1980-82).
Strassmann is the recipient of more than 20 journalism awards, including a 2002 Emmy Award for CBS News’ coverage of the D.C. sniper story, an Ohio State Award and two regional Emmy Awards.
He was born in New York City and grew up in Boston. Strassmann was graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1980 with a B.A. in American government. He is married to WSB-TV Atlanta anchor Linda Stouffer. They have two children.