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Knight Chair

Knight Chair in Digital Media Strategy

The Knight Chair at Medill was endowed in 1999 by the Knight Foundation.

The Knight Foundation has established endowed chairs in journalism at top universities nationwide as part of its focus on sustaining democracy by leading journalism to its best possible future in the 21st century.

The Knight Chair program provides funding for leading journalists who take positions as tenured professors within academia. Holders of the endowed chairs practice journalism, teach innovative classes and create experimental projects and new programs that help lead journalism excellence in the digital age.

The purpose of the Knight Chair in Digital Media Strategy is to create new knowledge and advances in multimedia journalism and to support the presentation of news using different media. The Knight Chair helps Medill explore new and emerging ways of delivering news and information on digital platforms and provides hands-on, full-time instruction to undergraduate and graduate students.

Former Medill Dean Ken Bode was the first Knight Chair at Medill when it was established as the Knight Chair in Broadcasting. The focus of the chair was later changed, and, in 2009, Owen Youngman was named Knight Chair in Digital Media Strategy. Youngman held the position until his retirement in 2020. Jeremy Gilbert (BSJ00, MSJ00) is currently the Knight Chair.