( CNN ) -- When freelance journalist Steven Sotloff disappeared during a reporting trip to Syria in August 2013 , his family kept the news a secret . Families of hostages are frequently advised to do this by security firms , and news organizations are sometimes willing to cooperate . But Sotloff 's abduction is now international news . Sotloff is seen at the end of a video published on Tuesday by the Islamic extremist group ISIS . After another journalist , James Foley , is shown with his head cut off , the video 's narrator indicates that Sotloff will be killed if President Barack Obama does not cease U.S. airstrikes against ISIS . `` I 've known Steve was missing for the past year -- the problem is , he was a low-profile freelance journalist -- his family did n't want anyone in the media talking about Steve because they were afraid of retaliation , '' said Emerson Lotzia , who lived with Sotloff in college . `` If any old friends asked me about Steve over the past year , I 'd just say I had n't seen him in a long time . '' Sotloff 's family members have not commented on their son 's disappearance . But Lotzia said he has been in touch with Sotloff 's father , Art , and Tuesday 's video `` was the first time his dad and family have heard anything about Steve since last December . '' Out of public view , the family and a number of government agencies have been trying to gain Sotloff 's release for the past year . U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen , R-Florida , who represents the district where the family lives , said Wednesday that she had met with the family in Miami and spoken with them by phone . `` My office has contacted the relevant agencies , departments and even organizations with connections on the ground in Syria to try to get answers for the Sotloff family , '' Ros-Lehtinen said . This is a tragic situation and we have seen that [ ISIS ] has no respect for human life . '' Sotloff , 31 , grew up in South Florida with his mother , father and younger sister . He majored in journalism at the University of Central Florida . His personal Facebook page lists musicians like the Dave Matthews Band , Phish , Miles Davis and movies like `` Lawrence of Arabia '' and `` The Big Lebowski '' as favorites . On his Twitter page , he playfully identifies himself as a `` stand-up philosopher from Miami . '' Lotzia met Sotloff when they were both starting college in 2002 . He described Sotloff as `` someone you want in your circle of friends -- just a good , good guy . '' He reminisced about `` epic video game battles at our apartment '' -- usually NCAA football or other sports games . In 2004 , Sotloff left UCF and moved back to the Miami area . `` I think he was at a crossroads of life , '' Lotzia said . `` He talked about wanting to go over to the Middle East . '' He graduated from another college , began taking Arabic classes and subsequently picked up freelance writing work for a number of publications , including Time , Foreign Policy , World Affairs and the Christian Science Monitor . His travels took him to Yemen , Saudi Arabia , Qatar , Turkey -- among other countries -- and eventually Syria . `` He 's an incredible writer , '' said Tim Smith , another college friend who kept in touch with him via Facebook over the years . `` I know reporting on an international level is what he always wanted to do . '' Ashley Burns , who edited some of Sotloff 's work for their college newspaper , said that out of all the people he met through the newspaper , he wished he had followed Sotloff 's work more in recent years . `` He writes with incredible passion , about Benghazi and his experiences in Syria and Turkey , while showing an incredible relationship with -- and understanding of -- the people that he met in the countries that he has worked in , '' Burns said . `` He has seen things I 'll never see and his courage is incredible . ''
Steven Sotloff 's family and friends had to keep his disappearance a secret . Sotloff is shown in a video of James Foley 's murder , and his life is threatened . Comment: He 's `` someone you want in your circle of friends '' Friends describe as `` incredible '' his gift and passion for writing on international issues .