for press freedom in the Philippines. As Rappler's CEO, Maria has endured constant
political harassment and arrests by the Duterte government, forced to post bail ten
times to stay free. Rappler's battle for truth and democracy is the subject of the 2020
Sundance Film Festival documentary, A Thousand Cuts.
For her courage and journalistic integrity, Maria has received numerous accolades. In
October 2021, she was one of two journalists awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in
recognition of her "efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition
for democracy and lasting peace."
In 2022, she was appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General to the Leadership
Panel of the Internet Governance Forum and serves as its Vice-Chair.
She is an inaugural Carnegie Distinguished Fellow at Columbia University’s newly
launched Institute of Global Politics, where she leads projects related to artificial
intelligence and democracy. In July 2024, she will join the faculty of Columbia
University’s School of International and Public Affairs as a professor of professional
practice.
Maria authored Seeds of Terror: An Eyewitness Account of Al-Qaeda’s Newest Center
of Operations in Southeast Asia and From Bin Laden to Facebook. Her most recent
book, How to Stand Up to a Dictator, was released in November 2022 and has been
translated into 20 languages with more to come next year.
Maria focuses critical attention on the breakdown of our global information ecosystem
and how interconnected communities of action can hold the line to protect democratic
values.