LSU’s Manship School Names Ruth Moon Mari, Ph.D., to Faculty

July 3, 3019

Baton Rouge, LA – Ruth Moon Mari, Ph.D., will join LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication in fall 2019 as an assistant professor in media and public affairs. Moon Mari brings a strong background in journalism and mass communication, with a special research interest in the way journalism is practiced in countries with authoritarian governments and limited technology infrastructure.

Moon Mari is currently the editor of Response, Seattle Pacific University's alumni and university magazine, where she assigns and edits content, oversees graphic design and coordinates production and distribution. She has taught at three universities in the Seattle area. Mari completed her doctoral fieldwork in East Africa, where she studied the constraints and incentives influencing the journalism field in Rwanda. She also has a strong background in journalism for media outlets with local, regional, national and specialized audiences. Moon Mari continues to freelance for Christianity Today.

Moon Mari earned her doctorate in communication from the University of Washington, along with two master’s degrees — one in communication from the University of Washington and one in political science from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English literature from Wheaton College in Illinois.

Moon Mari is the recipient of numerous awards and fellowships, including a Boren Fellowship and a research grant and best paper award from the University of Washington’s Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies. Her research has been published in journals including Journalism; Information, Communication & Society; and International Journal of Communication.  

“We are elated to add Ruth to our team here at the Manship School. Her specialized experience both as a working journalist for a variety of platforms and her unique and fascinating field of research will expand the experiential education and study opportunities that our students have here,” Martin Johnson, dean of the Manship School, said.

Moon Mari is married to Will Mari, Ph.D., who is also joining the Manship School in fall 2019.

For more information, contact smalin@lsu.edu. 

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LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication ranks among the strongest collegiate communication programs in the country, with its robust emphasis on media and public affairs. It offers undergraduate degrees in public relations, journalism, political communication, digital advertising and pre-law, along with four graduate degree programs: master of mass communication, Ph.D. in media and public affairs, certificate of strategic communication, and dual MMC/law degree. Its public relations students were recently ranked the #1 team in the nation, and its digital advertising and student media teams frequently earn national recognition.