Gina Baleria

Office

Biography

Gina Baleria, EdD, is an Assistant Professor of Journalism, Media Writing, Radio & Podcasting, & Digital Media, and the host and producer of the News in Context podcast, which airs on 102.5 KSFP in San Francisco and online. Dr. Baleria is also author of The Journalism Behind Journalism: Going Beyond the Basics to Train Effective Journalists in a Shifting Landscape (Routledge 2021), and she co-authored Writing & Reporting News for the 21st Century (Cognella, 2018), winner of the 2020 Textbook Award from the Broadcast Education Association (BEA). Her research & creative interests revolve around news and digital media literacy; podcasting; and digital engagement and communication across socially salient differences.

Dr. Baleria earned her doctorate from San Francisco State University; her Master's in Communication: Media Studies from Stanford University; and her Bachelor's in English with emphases in Film & History from UCLA. Prior to becoming a professor, Dr. Baleria was an award-winning broadcast & digital journalist at stations including KCBS Radio, KGO TV, & KGO Radio in San Francisco; KXTV & KFBK in Sacramento; and KCAL in Los Angeles. She also helped create and manage a digital newsroom at the nonpartisan nonprofit governance organization, California Forward.

Prior to joining the team at SSU, Dr. Baleria taught digital media, media writing, and radio & podcasting at San Francisco State University. She serves on the boards of the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library and Theatre Bay Area, and sits on the news advisory boards of AllSides and Santa Rosa Junior College. Dr. Baleria also serves as a digital communications consultant for nonprofits focused on media literacy, engaging across difference, and improving public discourse and civic life. When not working, she enjoys hiking, swing dancing, coaching basketball, reading, traveling, petting other people's dogs, and enjoying the city and Bay Area with friends and family. She and her husband live in San Francisco.