Post.com Political Editor to Lead Student Media

Jason Manning, political editor of washingtonpost.com, one of the nation’s leaders in digital media, is moving west to become director of Student Media at Arizona State University. Manning will direct The State Press, the university’s independent campus daily with a circulation of 17,000; the ASU Web Devil, the online operation of The State Press; the weekly State Press Magazine; and Channel 2, a student-operated campus cable TV channel. He also will teach as a faculty associate at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. James Rund, vice president for university student initiatives, which oversees Student Media, said Manning is a perfect fit as the news media continues to evolve into converged, multiplatform delivery systems. “In a rapidly changing and increasingly competitive world, it is important that we provide our students with high-quality learning experiences,” Rund said. “In the case of journalism it is paramount that we match the applied experience with the growing quality and stature of the Cronkite School. With the appointment of Jason Manning to director of Student Media, we intend to do just that: to raise the quality, broaden the reach and integrate the portfolio of Student Media.” Manning has a deep background in digital media. Since January 2006 he has served as political editor at The Washington Post’s Web site, supervising teams of reporters, videographers, producers, bloggers and interns. Washingtonpost.com is third among all U.S. newspaper Web sites in usage, behind only The New York Times and USA Today. Before joining washingtonpost.com in January 2006, Manning was an editor on the Web site of “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” focusing on national and political news. He also was education Web producer for U.S. News & World Report and an editor at American Online. He is a graduate of the University of Florida’s College of Communication and holds a master’s degree in history from George Mason University. He starts as Student Media director next month. Manning said it is “an honor and a great opportunity to direct Student Media at Arizona State, where student journalists and former directors have built a tradition of excellence. No other university is as well-positioned to take on the challenges and opportunities presented by the transformation taking place in the profession of journalism.” Manning succeeds James N. Crutchfield, the former Akron Beacon Journal publisher who is returning to his alma mater, Duquesne University, to teach. At ASU, Manning also will teach at the Cronkite School, which has become a leader in digital journalism education. Manning joins recent Cronkite School additions Dan Gillmor, who is directing the school’s new Knight Center for Digital Media Entrepreneurship, and Retha Hill, former head of BET online who is running Cronkite’s New Media Innovation Lab. “The Cronkite School is leading the way with innovation and forward thinking,” Manning said. “The opportunity to teach courses at Cronkite means rubbing elbows with some of the brightest faculty and most enterprising students in the country. I am thrilled to take part in what is going on here.” Cronkite Dean Christopher Callahan said Manning will add greatly to Student Media and the Cronkite School. “Jason comes to ASU with great ideas and a rich background in digital media,” Callahan said. “We are confident that under his leadership, Student Media will become an incubator for multiplatform ideas and innovations for years to come.”