Arizona State University

Description

The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication seeks an innovative and collaborative leader to serve as founding Executive Director of the Knight Center for the Future of News and professor of practice. This individual will lead groundbreaking efforts in artificial intelligence and other future-facing areas to tackle journalism’s biggest challenges through research, experimentation, product development, training and collaboration.

The Executive Director/Professor of Practice will provide strategic leadership for the Knight Center, working at the intersection of the media industry, entrepreneurship and academia to drive impactful results.

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible, 12-month (not academic year) faculty appointment with the faculty rank of Professor of Practice; it is not a tenure-track appointment. This is a grant-funded position on ASU’s Downtown Phoenix Campus.

Essential Duties:

• Develop and execute a strategic plan for the Knight Center, ensuring it is at the forefront of journalism innovation and achieves the grant deliverables
• Oversee the three research labs, including strategic oversight, personnel and project management, and impact reporting
• Directly lead the Knight Center’s Information hub, working with staff to create meaningful research, communication, events, tools and training to accelerate the pace of innovation.
• Produce wide-reaching thought leadership and engagement around the work of the Knight Center and its impact
• Work with the Dean and the development director to secure additional funding
• Engage with faculty and students at the Cronkite School to integrate research and hands-on learning opportunities.
• Build strong partnerships throughout ASU and with media organizations, universities, and entrepreneurs to drive collaboration.
• Manage the Knight Center’s budget and ensure financial accountability.
• Cultivate and lead a high-performing team to achieve the Knight Center’s goals
• Foster a culture of innovation among faculty, staff and students by harnessing fresh ideas and experimenting with new tools, technologies and techniques
• Teach undergraduate and graduate courses as assigned
• Perform service both internally (e.g., committee assignments, student recruitment) and externally (e.g. professional workshops, contest judging)
• Perform other duties, as assigned.

About the Knight Center for the Future of News:

The Knight Center for the Future of News is dedicated to addressing the most pressing challenges in journalism through three specialized labs:

• Journalism, Community & Democracy Lab: Addressing declining public trust in news and developing strategies to rebuild credibility.
• Sustainability Lab: Exploring revenue, journalistic and operational models to ensure the long-term financial viability of news organizations.
• Innovation in Reporting & Storytelling Lab: Researching, experimenting and developing emerging tools to reach, inform and engage new and younger audiences.

The Knight Center will also house the Information hub, where we will bring together the most innovative ideas, projects and products projects in these three areas and facilitate conversations about these issues throughout the industry — gathering, communicating, and training.

About the Cronkite School

The Cronkite School is widely recognized as the nation’s premier mass communication school. Rooted in the time-honored values that characterize its namesake—accuracy, responsibility, integrity—the school fosters excellence and ethics among students as they master the professional skills required to succeed in the digital media world of today and tomorrow.

Based on ASU’s Downtown Phoenix campus in the heart of the nation’s fifth-largest city, the School is known for its hands-on, “teaching hospital” approach to learning led by a faculty composed of Pulitzer Prize-winning professional journalists, strategic communications leaders and world-class media scholars. More than 2,500 undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students regularly lead the country in national competitions as they prepare for careers in journalism, PR, marketing, strategic media and related communication fields.

About Arizona State University

Arizona State University, ranked the No. 1 “Most Innovative School” in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for 10 years in succession, has forged the model for a New American University. Repeatedly ranked No. 1, ASU has topped more than 20 lists in the last three years: No. 1 in the U.S. for global impact (Times Higher Education) and No. 1 in the U.S. for sustainable practices (Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education). ASU is a comprehensive public research institution, measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves. ASU operates on the principles that learning is a personal and original journey for each student; that they thrive on experience and that the process of discovery cannot be bound by traditional academic disciplines. Through innovation and a commitment to accessibility, ASU has drawn pioneering researchers to its faculty even as it expands opportunities for qualified students, attracting some of the highest-quality students from all 50 states and more than 130 nations.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree at the time of appointment, and at least 10 years of relevant experience.

Desired Qualifications:

• Strong track record of leading collaborative, fast-moving and high-functioning teams
• Experience driving innovation in technology, artificial intelligence, digital innovation or media
• Proven success in launching or scaling new initiatives, particularly in media or tech
• Experience in fundraising
• Experience in managing a budget
• Demonstrated success in fostering collaboration across disciplines, institutions, or organizations.
• Experience working in higher education or research institutions; working with college students
• Experience in coaching and training professionals
• Graduate degree

Application Instructions

Applicants will be asked to create or use an existing Interfolio Dossier to submit the following:

1. A cover letter stating qualifications
2. Curriculum vitae or resume
3. Contact information (name, address, email, telephone number) for three professional references

The applicant’s name should appear in each uploaded file name. Cover letters may be addressed to the Search Committee Chair, Julia Wallace. Questions about the position should be directed to the search committee chair at: Julia.wallace@asu.edu.

Apply here: apply.interfolio.com/168801

Application deadline is July 9, 2025. Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis for a reserve pool. Applications in the reserve pool may then be reviewed in the order in which they were received until the position is filled.

Successful candidates will demonstrate throughout their materials how their teaching, research, and service will contribute to the fulfillment of the ASU Charter.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

A background check is required for employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.

See https://www.asu.edu/aad/manuals/acd/acd401.html and https://www.asu.edu/titleIX/.

In compliance with federal law, ASU prepares an annual report on campus security and fire safety programs and resources. ASU’s Annual Security and Fire Safety Report is available online at https://www.asu.edu/police/PDFs/ASU-Clery-Report.pdf You may request a hard copy of the report by contacting the ASU Police Department at 480-965-3456.