New Investigative Reporter Joins International

Roman Höfner, a master of open-source analysis and visual forensics, will join the International Investigations team as an investigative reporter based in our Berlin bureau.

Roman brings exciting new skills to the team. He comes to us from Der Spiegel, where he was a key part of the investigative unit that received the prestigious Reporter Prize for Investigations for reconstructing how a Ukrainian commando unit sabotaged the Nord Stream pipeline. Roman has helped reveal illicit organ trafficking networks, unmask online extremist groups and show that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used his personal phone to share classified i nformation.

A true collaborator, Roman will fit right in on a Times investigations team that works with correspondents around the world and moves seamlessly between yearlong projects and off-the-news targets.

Roman is also an accomplished visual-first reporter, having spent more than a decade in Der Spiegel's multimedia unit before making the move to investigations. He specializes in turning complex chains of evidence into clear, digestible stories for readers.

He has taught open-source techniques at more than a dozen institutions in multiple European countries, including at the Oxford Internet Institute and the Reuters Institute. When he's not tracing digital breadcrumbs or teaching others how to do it, he might be found in the wood shop - though he'd admit he's still investigating how woodworking actually works.

Roman starts on Nov. 2. Please join us in giving him a warm welcome.

- Phil and Matt