【Symposium】The Future of Journalism 2023

Sali Augustine

Chancellor of Sophia School Corporation; Professor, Faculty of Global Studies

Sali Augustine obtained bachelor’s degrees in Political Science from the University of Calicut, India and in Philosophy from Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth in Pune, India. Subsequently, he graduated from the Faculty of Theology at Sophia University and received his M.A and Ph.D. in Area Studies (Ethnic Politics) at the Graduate School of Foreign Studies. Teaching as Lecturer in the Faculty of Literature (2007), Associate Professor in the Faculty of Theology (2009), and Professor in the Faculty of Global Studies (2016), he served as Vice President for Student Affairs (2017) and Trustee for General Affairs of Sophia School Corporation (since 2018) before becoming Chancellor of Sophia University in May 2023.

Jelani Cobb

Dean and Henry Luce Professor of Journalism, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism

Jelani Cobb joined the Journalism School faculty in 2016 and became Dean in 2022. He has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2015. He received a Peabody Award for his 2020 PBS Frontline film ”Whose Vote Counts?” and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Commentary in 2018. He has also been a political analyst for MSNBC since 2019. He is the author of To the Break of Dawn: A Freestyle on the Hip Hop Aesthetic. He produced a number of documentaries including Lincoln’s Dilemma, Obama: A More Perfect Union and Policing the Police. He was educated at Howard University, where he earned a B.A. in English, and Rutgers University, where he completed his MA and doctorate in American History in 2003.

Mark Hansen

David and Helen Gurley Brown Professor of Journalism, Columbia Journalism School

Mark Hansen joined Columbia Journalism School in July 2012 and took on the position of inaugural director of the east coast branch of the Brown Institute for Media Innovation. Previously, he served on the technical staff at Bell Laboratories and as a professor in the Department of Statistics, the Department of Design Media Arts and the Department of Electrical Engineering at UCLA. For nearly three decades, he has been working at the intersection of data, art and technology, having an active art practice involving the presentation of data for the public. In terms of his journalistic experience, he has been a long-standing visiting researcher at the New York Times R&D Lab.

Tomoki Kunieda

Associate Professor, Department of Journalism, Sophia University

Tomoki Kunieda, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Journalism at Sophia University. His main research field is public relations history. Kunieda is the co-editor of the book “Public Relations in Japan: Evolution of Communication Management in a Culture of Lifetime Employment” (Routledge, 2018) and co-translator of the book “Argenti’s Corporate Communication” (Tokyu Agency, 2019). He is an advisor to the Public Relations Office of the Japanese Cabinet Office and the deputy editor-in-chief of the magazine GALAC published by the Association of Broadcast Critics. He earned his Ph.D. in Journalism from Sophia University. He has taught at Taisho University and Sophia University as assistant professor and assumed his current position in 2019.

Akira Oikawa

AI & Quantum Technology Editor, Nikkei Inc.

Akira Oikawa has been covering science and technology news since he first joined Nikkei Inc. in 2005. Early in his career, he worked on topics such as international negotiations for climate change countermeasures, nuclear issues after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident and science and technology policy. Oikawa’s more recent work includes articles on cutting-edge technology such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computers, and he has been the AI Quantum Editor since 2020, after he completed studies at the University of California, USA. He also moderates "NIKKEI LIVE," which is live-streaming content provided by The Nikkei Online Edition. Through interviews with experts and others, Oikawa will explore the future directions of technological evolution, which will drastically change our economy, work and lifestyles.

Ruri Abe

Professor, Department of Journalism, Sophia University

Ruri Abe holds a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London). She was a Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Research on Migration, Refugees and Belonging (CMRB), University of East London (2016-2017). She specializes in Media Studies and Sociology. Her recent publications include "Gender Orientalism in the Media: Epistemological Perspectives and Representations of Muslim Women in International Reporting."

Yoshihiro Oto

Professor, Department of Journalism, Sophia University
Director, Institute of Media Journalism and Culture, Sophia University

After working (1990-1994) at the National Association of Commercial Broadcasters in Japan (NAB), Oto became Professor in 2007 after being a Lecturer (1994-1999) and Assistant Professor (1999-2007) at the Department of Journalism, Faculty of Humanities, Sophia University. He was also a visiting scholar at the East Asia Institute, Columbia University (2000-2001). Since 2008, he has been the Board Chairman for the Japan Council for Better Radio and Television. He has also been a visiting researcher at the General Affairs and Research Bureau of the House of Representatives at the Japan National Diet since 2002. He specializes in media theory and information society theory.