Rappler CEO Ressa Receives Columbia Journalism Award

RAPPLER CEO Maria Ressa received the 2019 Columbia University Journalism Award on May 22. Ressa was recognized by the Journalism School’s faculty “for the depth and quality of her work, as well as her courage and persistence in the field.”

The award, established in 1958, is given annually by the faculty of the New York-based school in recognition of a journalist’s outstanding accomplishments and singular journalistic performance in the public interest.

Ressa, a journalist in Asia for more than 30 years, is executive editor of Rappler, which she co-founded in 2012. She was CNN’s bureau chief in Manila and then in Jakarta. She later became CNN’s lead investigative reporter, focusing on terrorism in Southeast Asia. She has authored 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.”

In 2005, she managed ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs, the largest multi-platform news operation in the Philippines. Her work aimed at redefining journalism by combining traditional broadcast, digital media and mobile phone technology for social change.

Ressa has been honored around the world for her work in fighting “fake news” and attempts to silence the free press. In 2018, she won the prestigious Golden Pen of Freedom Award from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-INFRA), the Knight International Journalism Award of the International Center for Journalists, the Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award of the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Journalist of Courage and Impact Award of East-West Center, and the IX International Press Freedom Award of the University of Málaga and UNESCO, among others. In December 2018, Ressa was also named by TIME magazine among “The Guardians and The War on Truth” — a series celebrating journalists fighting to report fairly in the face of violence, oppression, and accusations of “fake news.” In April 2019, she was also recognized as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in the World.

Ressa said there are consequences to being “at the front lines.” In 14 months, the Philippine government filed 11 investigations and cases against Ressa and Rappler. She posted bail 8 times in about three months.

“Leadership requires courage – and there are many different kinds our industry and our world needs today. Now more than ever,” Ressa said during the 2019 Columbia University School of Journalism graduation where she received the award and delivered the commencement address.