Jelani Cobb, Dean and Henry R. Luce Professor of Journalism, has appointed Duy Linh Tu, M.S. ‘99, to be Dean of Academic Affairs beginning Feb. 1. As Dean, Tu will direct curriculum and faculty to lead innovations in journalism, while continuing to emphasize foundational reporting techniques.
A multi-platform journalist and documentary filmmaker, Tu teaches reporting and video storytelling courses as a Professor of Professional Practice. His reporting has earned several honors, including Emmy, Pictures of the Year, and NPPA awards.
“I am deeply honored to be taking on this role. Columbia Journalism is my home. I learned journalism here, and I look forward to working with Dean Cobb on his vision for this next critical phase of the school,” said Tu.
Tu has been a member of the Journalism School community since 1998. In 2002, he began teaching as an adjunct professor before joining the full-time faculty in 2008. His most recent work focuses on climate, the environment, and social justice, all closely aligned with Dean Cobb’s priorities for the Columbia Journalism School.
He succeeds Winnie O’Kelley, who served as Academic Affairs Dean for three years. O’Kelley is returning to teaching in the business and economic track of the M.A. program. Previously she was an editor at Bloomberg, where she created and managed a global financial investigations reporting team that won the 2019 George Polk Award.
Tu is also active in emphasizing diversity and the importance of Asian perspectives in newsrooms and classrooms. He has held events at Columbia Journalism School highlighting the work of reporters from many backgrounds, stating that those identities “inform how we view the world and report on it.”
Tu is also the author of Narrative Storytelling for Multimedia Journalists (Focal Press). He serves on the boards of the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, Columbia Journalism Review, and the Video Consortium.
