The Jackson Institute for Global Affairs will host the Visiting Fellow Discussion Forum, "Journalism and Human Rights: Fighting Back Against Disinformation," featuring journalist Maria Ressa. The talk will be moderated by Jackson Senior Fellow Amb. Harry Thomas.
Ressa has been a journalist in Asia for more than 30 years. In 2012, she co-founded Rappler.com, now one of the leading online news organizations in the Philippines. Previously, Ressa was CNN’s bureau chief in Manila and Jakarta.
Rappler’s reporting on the authoritarian administration of President Rodrigo Duterte has spurred repeated intimidation tactics by the Filipino government to discredit Ressa and the media outlet.
Ressa has been honored around the world for her work in fighting disinformation, fake news and attempts to silence the free press. In 2018, she was named TIME magazine’s “Person of the Year” and won the prestigious Golden Pen of Freedom Award from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers. She also received the 2018 Gwen Ifill Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists. This year, Prospect magazine selected her as one of the world’s top 50 thinkers.
Ressa is the author of two books, “Seeds of Terror: An Eyewitness Account of al-Qaeda’s Newest Center of Operations in Southeast Asia,” and “From Bin Laden to Facebook.”
