Maria Ressa

Maria Ressa is a Filipino and American journalist and a co-recipient of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize “for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.”

Ressa was born on Oct. 2, 1963, in Manila, Philippines, and moved with her family to New Jersey when she was 10 years old. She graduated from Princeton University in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in English and certificates in theater and dance. She was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study political theater at the University of the Philippines Diliman.

Ressa’s journalism career includes founding an independent production company in 1987 while also serving as CNN's bureau chief in Manila until 1995, running CNN's Jakarta bureau from from 1995-2005, heading the news division of ABS-CBN, and writing for CNN and The Wall Street Journal. In 2012, Ressa co-founded Rappler, an online news company based in Manila, and serves as its CEO.

Ressa has served as a distinguished fellow at Columbia University's Institute of Global Politics since fall of 2023, and will become professor of professional practice in their School of International and Public Affairs in July 2024.

The Nobel Prize (n.d.). “Maria Ressa – Facts – 2021.” The Nobel Prize. Retrieved May 23, 2023. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2021/ressa/facts.

Zelazko, Alicja (2023, Jan. 18). Maria Ressa: Filipino American journalist. In Britannica. Retrieved on May 22, 2023, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Maria-Ressa.