George Sells                                     ExperiencedMedia and Communications Professional

840 N. Kirkwood Rd.  St. Louis, MO 63122                                                                                             cell 314-610-3335 ∙ georgesells4@gmail.com

On the cutting edge of the communications, 360 video, and media fields | Emmy winning leader in bringing news and VR/360 together | Storytelling pro who has excelled in developing 360 branded content | Deep background in broadcast journalism | Experience in building news operations from the ground up | Expert at telling the story that touches the audience and calls them to action | Crisis communication experience at the highest level

Extensive web and social media expertise along with crisis communication and media relations work.  That, paired with that traditional news experience and a deep network of relationships provide the whole package in today’s business and media environments.  

Working on the cutting edge of the "next big thing"​ in news gathering and journalism. As General Manager of News for MANDT VR in Hollywood, I developed best practices for the use of virtual reality/360 video in news. I'm ready to help others take the leap into the world of VR.  

Member, Producers Guild of America.

Experience

George Sells Media  St. Louis, MO                                                                                                                                                  2017-Present

Founder/Owner

·       Providing a unique set of services to clients addressing a variety of production and communications needs.

·       Media relations services, earning coverage, particularly for tech focused startups.

·       Virtual reality/360 production and storytelling, both journalistic and branded content.

·       Traditional on camera reporting.

·       Live event hosting.

·       Clients include the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans for VR/360 consulting, the Kirkwood School District and Jim Butler Auto Group for branded content and 360 branded content,  StoryUP VR for VR/360 documentary, HEC-TV for reporting and 360 work, VoiceXP for media relations, and the Emergency Nurses Association for live event work.

MANDT VR  Los Angeles, CA                                                                                                                                               

General Manager/Executive Producer of News and Documentary Content                                                        2016-2017

·      In charge of overseeing development and execution of news and documentary content.

·      Responsible for the development of storytelling “style” for news in the virtual reality format.

·      Shooting, editing, writing, and producing stories as part of effort to develop “best practices” for VR news.

·      Earned company’s first Emmy awardfor storytelling in VR. 

·      Leading work to help consult TV stations and station groups in best practices for news coverage and production in VR/360.

·      Responsible for developing a national network of correspondents to cover news for MANDT VR.

·      In charge of identifying, interviewing and hiring those correspondents.

·      Member of leadership team guiding the overall course for MANDT VR in the fast growing world of virtual reality.

·      Wrote “pitch deck” materials and participated in pitch meetings with prospective network and business clients.

·      Participated in developing content plan and deployment of 360 material for OTT app in partnership with “Podcast One.”

Office of the Circuit Attorney  St. Louis, MO                                                                                                                 2016

Public Information Officer

·      Led public communication and media relations efforts for Missouri’s highest profile prosecutor’s office. 

·      Involved in crisis communication efforts, including planning for release of material on a police officer being charged with murder and multiple officer involved shootings.

·      Took part in planning press events involving the Circuit Attorney.

·      Acted as spokesperson for the office when situations warranted.  

·      In charge of content for office social media accounts and websites.  

·      Worked on longer term communication plan for victims’ rights court battle and campaign.

·      Wrote and produced video material for social media and digital platforms.   

KTVI-TV (FOX)  St, Louis, MO                                                                                                                                           2008-2016

Reporter/Multimedia journalist 

·  Consistently generate lead stories for top station in the St. Louis market.

·  Member of “go team” covering the high-profile Ferguson grand jury decision. 

·  Won internal competition for stories generating web traffic more than twice as often as any other reporter.

·  Key player in building the station’s Facebook page to a top 10 national ranking among local stations. Now has more than 400,000 “likes.” 

·  Covered breaking stories and daily news in the St. Louis market.  

·  Smooth, seasoned on-air presence.  

·  Shooting and editing stories for air.  

·  Web producer, developing familiarity with a number of content management systems (CMS) for station websites.

News 12 Long Island, Woodbury, NY

Reporter                                                                                                                                                                                 2005-2007

·  Active leader in suburban New York City newsroom.  

·  Received Emmy nomination for best general news coverage in the entire New York City market.  

·  Quickly earned a reputation as one of the top reporters on the competitive Long Island news scene.  

·  Called, “one of the best broadcast news writers in the nation” by Network president Patrick Dolan.

Education

Boston University - Bachelor of Science in Journalism                                                                                                     

Awards

·  Earned MANDT VR’s first Emmy award, pitting a VR/360 story against “traditional” news content in San Francisco region

·  Emmy nominations in spot news, general news (twice), health news, feature, community, and series categories in St. Louis, New York City, and Louisville markets

·  Best On-Air TV personality.  Louisville American Women in Radio and TV Chapter

·  Numerous Associated press and SPJ awards and recognitions in the markets where I worked as a reporter.