Board, Officers and Members

Christophe Walter-Petit has been AFP’s lead representative on the NMC for five years and in addition to the officer position of NMC Treasurer, he is AFP’s General Counsel. Since joining AFP in 2012 Mr Walter-Petit has ensured that AFP is at the forefront of battles to ensure that AFP and all fellow NMC members are able to create, use and distribute independent news material at major organised events, such sports matches and tournaments, political gatherings, entertainment shows etc.

Matthias Mahn is one of three managing directors at German News Agency (dpa) and is responsible for the areas of personnel and law. The fully qualified lawyer and attorney has been working for Germany’s largest news agency since 2002 and represents the company in international organizations and strategy forums. Before joining dpa, he worked for several years for the Axel Springer publishing house.

The German News Agency (dpa) was founded in 1949 and is one of the world’s leading independent news agencies. Staff work according to the principles outlined in the dpa statute: independently from ideologies, businesses and governments.

My journey with Reuters commenced in 1994, capturing pivotal moments in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union as a photographer based in Warsaw. I witnessed history unfold, documenting the transformative fall of the Iron Curtain and the monumental collapse of the Berlin Wall. Before I was staff photographer for Polish Press Agency and weekly magazine Perspektywy.

Moving forward with Reuters, I ventured to New Delhi, where I led a team of photographers covering Southeast Asia and navigating the aftermath of the September 11 events in Pakistan and Afghanistan. During my time in London from 2003, I took on dual roles as Deputy Editor, Pictures EMEA, and Head of the London Picture Desk.

Since 2005, my home has been in Berlin, overseeing Global Sport Events and the Europe Central region. Since 2023 I am focusing on Global Sports coverage, editing, and orchestrating events like the Olympics, UEFA, FIFA events, and other prestigious World Championships.

Beyond photography, I collaborate closely with sales, marketing, legal and IT teams, spearheading innovative projects to elevate client experiences. Notably, I championed the implementation of an automated image feed for Google Olympics pictures, revolutionizing client engagement.

Driven by a passion for technological advancements, I draw inspiration from leveraging technology’s potential to bridge the gap between images and video. My collaboration with IT teams has led to pioneering tools facilitating remote photography and editing. Notably, I led the team that pioneered remote robotic DSLR cameras in 2009, setting a new industry standard.

Recognizing the need for streamlined event management, I conceptualized “ROSTER,” a bespoke events planning tool centralizing intricate event details, crucial for orchestrating large-scale events like the Olympics, in an accessible online platform.

In 2016-17, I spearheaded a team working on the groundbreaking Samsung Focus 360 Virtual Reality project. Over 12 months, we produced exclusive 360-degree news coverage and feature stories. Additionally, I played a pivotal role in introducing net cameras technology, now widely used across various sporting events, providing unique angles.

My career at Reuters mirrors my relentless pursuit of innovation, seamlessly blending technology with visual storytelling to redefine the boundaries of photojournalism and event coverage.