From March 27-28, 2025, the International Symposium on Online Journalism will take place in person at the University of Texas at Austin campus and online, with innovative tools to facilitate the participation of virtual attendees. Editors, producers, executives and academics from around the world will present during our keynote sessions, panels and social networking events.
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
President and CEO, National Public Radio (NPR)
Katherine Maher is the president and CEO of National Public Radio. She’s an experienced executive leading public interest institutions through technological disruption and strategic transformation, recently in areas of information and media, good governance and democracy, civil and human rights, international development and foreign policy… Read more
Editor in Chief, Teen Vogue
Versha Sharma is the editor in chief of Teen Vogue, where she leads a team of editors, reporters, social media managers, video producers, and more in covering all things fashion, politics, culture, and identity for young audiences. Since joining in May 2021, she has won several leadership awards and a National Magazine Readers’ Choice Award for Best News & Politics Cover… Read more
Executive Editor, Los Angeles Times
Terry Tang is the executive editor of the Los Angeles Times, overseeing the newsroom and the Opinion section. She was appointed to her role in 2024, becoming the first female editor in the paper’s 142-year history. Tang joined The Times in July 2019 as a deputy Op-Ed editor after two years at the American Civil Liberties Union, where she served as director of publications and editorial. She was named editorial page editor in 2022…. Read more
Director, Press Forward
Dale R. Anglin serves as the inaugural director of Press Forward, the growing coalition of local and national funders committed to investing more than $500 million to strengthen communities, democracy, and local news. Dale has deep experience in leading funder collaboratives, centering equity, and growing supporting local news initiatives… Read more
CEO, American Journalism Project (AJP)
Sarabeth Berman is the chief executive officer of the American Journalism Project (AJP), the first venture philanthropy dedicated to local news. AJP makes grants to nonprofit local news organizations across the country, supporting the successful launch of new enterprises and partnering with existing news organizations to grow and sustain their businesses… Read more
Director of Policy and Ecosystem Development, International Fund for Public Interest Media (France)
Pierrick is a founding team member of the International Fund for Public Interest Media, the first multilateral financing vehicle to fund media across low and middle income countries. He leads the Fund’s activities to create new funding mechanisms, such as national Journalism Funds, and to promote policies and other systemic interventions strengthening media ecosystems and fostering the sustainability of independent media…Read more
Director of Partnerships and Fundraising, Brazilian Journalism Support Fund (Brazil)
Carolina Oms is director of partnerships and fundraising at the Brazilian Journalism Support Fund, where she leads strategic partnerships and resource mobilization initiatives. Before her current role, she co-founded AzMina Institute, serving as institutional director and leading fundraising efforts for feminist journalism, technology and data projects…Read more
SPEAKERS
Associate Professor, Georgia Tech
Dr. Paul Alonso, an Associate Professor at Georgia Tech, holds a Ph.D. in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin. His books “Satiric TV in the Americas” (Oxford University Press, 2018) and “Digital Satire in Latin America” (University Press of Florida, 2024) are pioneer studies on the convergence of journalism, entertainment, satire, politics and digital cultures in Latin America… Read more
ISOJ Founder and Chair, Professor at the School of Journalism, UT Austin
Founder and director, Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas
Rosental Alves began his academic career in the United States in March 1996, after 27 years as a professional journalist, including seven years as a journalism professor in Brazil. He moved to Austin from Rio de Janeiro, where he was the managing editor and member of the board of directors of Jornal do Brasil, one of the most important Brazilian newspapers… Read more
Political Correspondent, The New York Times
Michael C. Bender is a political correspondent with The New York Times covering President Trump and his Make America Great Again movement. He covered Trump’s first term in the White House, each of his three presidential campaigns, and interviewed him inside Trump Tower, at his Mar-a-Lago resort, aboard Air Force One and one-on-one in the Oval Office… Read more
CEO, American Press Institute
Michael D. Bolden is CEO of the American Press Institute, a nonprofit that supports local and community-based media through research, programs and products that foster healthy, responsive and resilient news organizations. Previously, Michael was a managing editor at The San Francisco Chronicle… Read more
Vice President of Journalism, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Jim Brady has been vice president of Journalism at Knight Foundation since 2021 and oversees Knight’s journalism portfolio of more than $250 million. During his tenure, Jim has been instrumental in developing the strategic framework behind Press Forward, a $500 million effort to revitalize local news in the United States…Read more
Public Editor, The Dallas Morning News
Stephen Buckley has been The Dallas Morning News’ public editor since April 2024. A veteran editor and educator who worked at The Washington Post, Tampa Bay Times and the Poynter Institute, Stephen is a faculty member at Duke University’s Dewitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy, where he has taught journalism and public policy since 2021…Read more
Senior Design Editor of A.I. Initiative, The New York Times
Juliana Castro Varón is the senior design editor of A.I. Initiatives at The New York Times, a team using machine learning to uncover data patterns and make journalism more accessible. Before joining the Times, Juliana was a fellow at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard… Read more
CEO, Radio Rozana (Syria)
Lina Chawaf is a Syrian journalist and CEO of Radio Rozana, an independent Syrian media network that broadcasts from France. Chawaf, who lives and works in exile, produces programming that focuses on Syrian affairs, women rights, social taboos and gender stereotypes… Read more
Freelance journalist (Haiti)
Dieu-Nalio Chery is a freelance photojournalist from Haiti who is now based in Michigan and recently completed a fellowship with City of Asylum in Detroit. His work has been published in The New York Times, Reuters, The Washington Post, The Haitian Times and The Associated Press. He received the 2019 Robert Capa Gold Medal from the Overseas Press Club for photographic reporting that required “exceptional courage and enterprise”… Read more
Trainer, Google News Initiative
With almost 20 years of experience in digital marketing, publishing and tech, Iain Christie is now a Trainer for the Google News Initiative. Since spring 2022 he has instructed publishers in North America on leveraging Google tools for business sustainability, growing audience engagement, and strengthening reader/advertising revenue… Read more
Professor, Diego Portales University (Chile)
Teresa Correa (Ph.D., UT-Austin) is full professor in the School of Communication and Literature at Universidad Diego Portales, Chile. Currently she is the associate director of the Millenium Nucleus on Digital Inequalities and Opportunities (NUDOS in Spanish), principal investigator of Millenium Nucleus Futures of Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR) and associate editor of the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (JCMC)… Read more
Director and Co-founder, El Faro (El Salvador)
Carlos Dada is the director of Salvadoran investigative news site El Faro, which he co-founded in 1998. His reporting focuses on corruption and violence, and he has reported from numerous conflict zones, including Guatemala, Honduras, Iraq, Mexico and Venezuela. In 2011, he received the prestigious Maria Moors Cabot Prize from Columbia University… Read more
President, White House Correspondents’ Association
Chief Playbook Correspondent & Chief White House correspondent, POLITICO
Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author and White House correspondent for POLITICO. He has covered the Biden administration, with a specific focus on Vice President Kamala Harris since the inauguration. Since joining POLITICO in 2018, he’s covered the midterms, the Democratic presidential primary and general election through print, video journalism, podcasts and live events…Read more
Founder, Status
Oliver Darcy is the founder and author of Status, the definitive nightly briefing that informs readers about what is really happening in the corridors of media power. Status is widely read by those in the media industry, including news chiefs, Hollywood studio bosses and technology executives… Read more
Professor and Associate Dean of Research, Northwestern University
Stephanie Edgerly is a professor with a specialization in audience insight. She is also the associate dean of research at Medill. Her research explores how features of new media alter the way audiences consume news and impact engagement. She is particularly interested in the mixing of news and entertainment content, how individuals and groups create and share news over social media… Read more
Content Creator and Nonprofit Director
Carlos Eduardo Espina is a nonprofit director, activist, and aspiring lawyer who works to uplift the immigrant community through social media content, community organizing, and charitable causes. Carlos was born in Montevideo, Uruguay to a Uruguayan father and a Mexican mother, but immigrated to Texas when he was five years old… Read more
Visual journalist/cartoonist
Pulitzer Prize-winner, Mark Fiore, who the Wall Street Journal has called “the undisputed guru of the form,” is currently a John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford University. His work has appeared on the San Francisco Chronicle’s website, Newsweek.com, Slate.com, CBSNews.com, MotherJones.com, NPR’s web site and is currently being featured by KQED… Read more
Director, John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships, Stanford University
Dawn E. Garcia is director of the John S. Knight (JSK) Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University. The program empowers diverse journalism leaders to succeed as effective change agents, sustain democratic communities, and defend press freedom around the world. Under her leadership, JSK has built a global community of innovators, and actively supports fellows and alumni working in hostile and oppressive environments…Read more
Managing and Editorial Director, Platform for Investigative Journalism (Malawi)
Gregory Gondwe is the founder, editor and managing director of the Platform for Investigative Journalism (PIJ) in Malawi. Gregory’s journalism career began in 1993, coinciding with Malawi’s pivotal transition from a single-party state to a multi-party democracy. His dedication to exposing corruption has prompted harassment from authorities….Read more
Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Lucas Graves is a professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication. His research focuses on new organizations and practices in the emerging news ecosystem, and more broadly on the challenges digital networks pose to established media and political institutions. His book “Deciding What’s True: The Rise of Political Fact-Checking in American Journalism” came out in 2016…Read more
Associate Director, Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas
Summer Harlow is the associate director of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas and a visiting associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin. A former journalist, her research examines the challenges and opportunities for alternative media, independent journalism, and activism brought on by emerging technologies, particularly in Latin America and the Global South… Read more
Journalist (Turkey)
Gülsin Harman is an Istanbul-based journalist who frequently contributes to the New York Times and the BBC Monitoring. She has worked in cross-functional teams for enterprise stories, research projects and building news products for international media and journalism organizations… Read more
Editor in chief, The Daily Texan, UT Austin
McKenzie Henningsen currently serves as the editor in chief of The Daily Texan, UT’s student-run newspaper. McKenzie oversees the newsroom and the Opinion department. Previously working as a copy issue staffer and associate copy desk chief, she moved to the Opinion department in 2023… Read more
Professor, Texas State University
Vanessa de Macedo Higgins Joyce is professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University and a senior faculty research associate with the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas. Her research focuses on the evolution of journalism in a digital, interconnected world, concentrating on transnational and Latin American media… Read more
Director, CONNECTAS (LatAm)
Director of CONNECTAS, the pioneer and leader in Latin American investigative journalism and collaboration platform, an independent journalism alternative which he founded in 2012 as a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University. With 160 members in 19 countries, CONNECTAS is the largest and most vibrant regional newsroom… Read more
CEO and Co-founder, Fundación Maldita.es (Spain)
Chair, European Fact-Checking Standards Network
Clara Jiménez Cruz is the co-founder and CEO of Maldita.es Foundation, a leading organization in the fight against disinformation and the promotion of trust and integrity in information on a global scale through journalism, technology, education, research, and advocacy. She currently serves as president of the European Fact-checking Standards Network (EFCSN)…Read more
Professor, School of Journalism and Media, UT Austin
Thomas J. Johnson is the Amon G. Carter Jr. Centennial Professor in the School of Journalism at University of Texas at Austin as well as the director of the Digital Media Research Program, joining the faculty in Fall 2010. Johnson has studied the role of the media in each election since 1984…Read more
Professor, Department of Communication Studies, UT Austin
Director, Center for Media Engagement, UT Austin
Natalie (Talia) Jomini Stroud (Ph.D., Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania) is a professor in the Department of Communication Studies and the School of Journalism, as well as the founding and current director of the Center for Media Engagement in the Moody College of Communication at The University of Texas at Austin…Read more
Founder, Project C
Liz Kelly Nelson is a seasoned journalist and media professional with a deep interest in the evolving landscape of journalism, particularly the rise of creator-model journalism. She is the founder of Project C, a newsletter that explores and champions the work of independent journalists who are breaking away from traditional newsrooms to create their own direct-to-audience platforms…Read more
Editor and Chief Writer, The Fact Checker, The Washington Post
Glenn Kessler has been editor and chief writer of The Fact Checker since 2011, making him one of the pioneers of political fact-checking. In a journalism career spanning more than four decades, Glenn has covered foreign policy, economic policy, the White House, Congress, politics, airline safety and Wall Street…Read more
Senior Editor, The Wire (India)
Arfa Khanum is a senior editor at The Wire, an independent news website published in Hindi, English, Urdu and Marathi. She leads the multimedia team and hosts one of the most popular online video programs in India, which is primarily devoted to the issues of people living on the margins of Indian democracy… Read more
Chief AI Officer, public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk (Germany)
Uli Köppen is chief AI officer for German public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk. She leads AI strategy for BR and is responsible for the journalistic data and AI teams working on algorithmic investigations and journalistic products. As a Nieman Fellow 2019, she spent an academic year at Harvard and MIT… Read more
Founder and CEO, The Trust Project
Sally Lehrman, an award-winning journalist, founded and leads the Trust Project, an international collaboration she began building in 2014 to strengthen public confidence in the news through accountability, integrity and transparency. Hundreds of news organizations now show the Trust Indicators® on their pages…Read more
Head of AI and Media Integrity Program, The Partnership on AI (PAI)
Claire Leibowicz is the head of the AI and Media Integrity Program at The Partnership on AI (PAI), where she has worked since the organization’s inception. With over a decade of experience in AI and society, she has developed multistakeholder AI governance strategies, researched responsible AI, and informed technology policies…Read more
Graduate Student, University of Texas at Austin
Zhi Lin is a third-year PhD student in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research examines the communicative structure of social media and how individuals and institutions involve in international conflicts through social media. Her work has been published in Political Communication and Media, Culture and Society…Read more
Curator, Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University
Ann Marie Lipinski is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and curator of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University, home to an international fellowship program and an innovative group of publications about journalism, including Nieman Lab, Nieman Reports and Nieman Storyboard… Read more
Head of Advocacy and Education, Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI)
Santiago Lyon is the head of advocacy and education for the Adobe-led Content Authenticity Initiative, working to combat misinformation through digital content provenance. He has more than 40 years of experience in photography as an award-winning photojournalist, photo editor, media executive and educator… Read more
Founder and Executive Director, Trusting News
Joy Mayer is the founder and executive director of Trusting News, a project that studies how people decide what news to trust and helps journalists and the public understand each other. She and her team train newsrooms on strategies for demonstrating credibility and actively earning trust… Read more
Executive Director, Center for News, Technology & Innovation (CNTI)
Amy S. Mitchell is the founding executive director of the Center for News, Technology & Innovation (CNTI). Prior to her role at CNTI, Amy served as managing director of news and information research at the Pew Research Center. In her 25 years with Pew Research, Amy helped launch the journalism research program…Read more
Vice President, Editorial Innovation and AI Strategy, Hearst Newspapers (HNP)
Tim O’Rourke is vice president, editorial innovation and AI strategy for Hearst Newspapers (HNP), where he leads the group’s DevHub editorial engineering, visual and data storytelling, and AI+Automation teams. Previously, Tim was a managing editor and director of product and strategy for the San Francisco Chronicle…Read more
Co-founder, Reductress
Sarah Pappalardo is a writer, producer, and digital strategist who co-founded the satirical women’s magazine, Reductress. They also co-authored the books,” How to Win at Feminism” and “How to Stay Productive When the World is Ending.” Sarah was named one of TIME Magazine’s “23 People Who Are Changing What’s Funny Right Now…Read more
Staff Writer, The Atlantic
Ashley Parker is a staff writer at The Atlantic. Previously, Ashley—a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner—spent eight years at The Washington Post, where she covered all four years of Donald Trump’s first presidency, was White House bureau chief during President Joe Biden’s first two years, and covered the 2024 presidential campaign as the senior national political correspondent…Read more
Co-founder, Editor and Executive Director, Direkt36 (Hungary)
András Pethő is co-founder and executive director of Direkt36, an investigative journalism center in Hungary. Direkt36, which was launched in 2015, is one of the few Hungarian journalism organizations that are not controlled by pro-government forces and other political interest groups…Read more
Professor, School of Journalism and Media, UT Austin
Paula M. Poindexter, professor of journalism and media at The University of Texas at Austin, has published six books, including the forthcoming “Gen Z, Social Media, and News: Implications for the Future of News Engagement, Journalism, the U.S., and Democracy”…Read more
Professor of Practice and Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, School of Journalism and Media, UT Austin
Robert Quigley is a professor of practice in the UT Austin School of Journalism and Media, focusing on digital journalism. He is a 16-year veteran of the print journalism industry. In the last few years of his newspaper career, he helped the Austin American-Statesman reach national prominence with its use of digital media…Read more
Managing Editor, The Daily Dot
Ramon Ramirez is the managing editor of the Daily Dot, and formerly the Dot’s news director, entertainment editor and evening editor. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, Grantland, Washington City Paper, Austin American-Statesman and Austin Monitor…Read more
Nieman Berkman-Klein Fellow of Journalism Innovation, Harvard University
Ben Reininga is currently the Nieman Berkman-Klein Fellow of Journalism Innovation at Harvard University. His work focuses on the rise of creator journalists on social platforms, identifying responsible ways to harness growing audience interest while building trust. He spent the past five years as head of editorial at Snapchat… Read more
Co-founder and Director, Efecto Cocuyo (Venezuela)
Fellow, ICFJ Knight
Luz Mely Reyes is a Venezuelan journalist with a distinguished career focused on politics and migration issues. She is the co-founder and general director of Efecto Cocuyo, a digital native media outlet specializing in human rights, politics and sensitive topics. She is a 2024 ICFJ Knight Fellow for Journalism in Exile and a 2025 Mellon Fellow… Read more
Founder, Newsroom Robots Lab
Nikita Roy is a data scientist, journalist, and Harvard-recognized AI futurist. She is the founder of Newsroom Robots Labs, an AI training and advisory firm for media organizations, currently incubating at Harvard Innovation Labs. Nikita also hosts the globally acclaimed Newsroom Robots Podcast, which has been ranked among the top technology podcasts in over 30 countries on Apple Podcasts…Read more
Deputy Editor in Chief, Proekt (Russian site in exile)
Mikhail Rubin is a Russian journalist living in exile. He is deputy editor in chief of Proekt. There he has spearheaded numerous investigations into Russian President Vladimir Putin and corruption of Russian authorities. Mikhail’s investigative work earned him six laurels from the Zimin Foundation’s independent Redkollegiya award, which supports free and professional journalism in Russia… Read more
Director and Professor, School of Journalism and Media, UT Austin
David Ryfe is the director of and professor in the School of Journalism and Media at The University of Texas at Austin. During his career, he has published widely in the areas of presidential communication, political communication, public deliberation and the history and sociology of news. These days his work mostly concerns the ongoing disruption of American journalism… Read more
CEO, The Texas Tribune
Sonal Shah is the CEO of The Texas Tribune, steering one of the nation’s most prominent nonprofit news organizations into a new era of growth, cultural engagement, and public service. Previously, Sonal served as interim executive vice president at United Way Worldwide, where she guided one of the world’s largest nonprofits through a pivotal period of strategic realignment… Read more
Vice President of Content, Yahoo News
Brooke Siegel is the Vice President of Content for Yahoo News where she leads original content and curation strategy. Brooke has spent her career in digital media, specializing in content strategy, operations, and product development. Prior to joining Yahoo, Brooke spent nearly a decade at Hearst Magazines where she most recently served as senior vice president of content…Read more
National Reporter, ProPublica
Craig Silverman is an award-winning journalist and author and one of the world’s leading experts on online disinformation, fake news, and digital investigations. He’s a national reporter with ProPublica, where he investigates digital platforms and online manipulation. He’s also the editor of the European Journalism Centre’s Verification Handbook series… Read more
Senior Writer, The Onion
Sammi Skolmoski is a senior writer at The Onion and cartoon contributor at the New Yorker…Read more
Co-founder, The Texas Tribune
Senior Advisor, Emerson Collective
Evan Smith is a senior advisor at Emerson Collective, working closely with journalists and funders around the country to support local news. He’s also a professor of practice at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He previously spent more than thirteen years at The Texas Tribune, which he co-founded and led as CEO… Read more
Associate Professor, University of Minnesota
Director, Minnesota Journalism Center
Benjamin Toff is an associate professor at the Hubbard School of Journalism & Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota where he is also director of the Minnesota Journalism Center. His research focuses on the public’s changing relationship with news as well as its political implications, and he is co-author of “Avoiding the News: Reluctant Audiences for Journalism”… Read more
Associate Professor, Pontifical Catholic University (Chile)
Sebastián Valenzuela (PhD, University of Texas at Austin) is associate professor in the School of Communications at Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (UC Chile) and chief science officer of the Swiss-based International Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE). He is principal investigator in two interdisciplinary research centers in Chile… Read more
Assistant Professor of Instruction, School of Journalism and Media, UT Austin
Kate West is an Emmy-nominated broadcast journalist with 20 years of experience covering the news for various local television stations across the country. Currently, she’s an assistant professor of instruction in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Texas primarily teaching the broadcast journalism classes… Read more
Associate Professor, Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico)
Sandra Vera Zambrano is an associate professor at the Universidad Iberoamericana and a Level 1 member of the National System of Researchers. She coordinates the Revista Iberoamericana de Comunicación and leads a research project about journalists’ labor conditions in Mexico…Read more
Co-founder and CEO, Factchequeado (Argentina/U.S.)
Laura Zommer is co-founder and CEO of Factchequeado. She is a recipient of the Maria Moors Cabot Prize Special Citation 2024, as well as a Knight Fellow with the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) and an Ashoka Fellow. For more than a decade, Laura was the executive director of Chequeado, the first fact-checking organization in the Global South…Read more
