Full Name
Johanna Maska
Job Title
CEO,
Current Employer
Global Situation Room
Speaker Bio
Johanna Maska is CEO of Global Situation Room, and a NewsNation political contributor with more than 20 years experience in politics at the state and federal level.
Maska spent more than eight years working with President Barack Obama, a journey that began as one of his early hires in 2007 on his historic Iowa Caucus campaign, and ended at the White House. With President Obama, Maska played an important role in two victorious presidential campaigns and set the stage for history, directing his events and engagements in more than 40 countries and in almost every state. Before that, Maska worked in Iowa and Kansas on campaigns and in state government.
As CEO of Global Situation Room, Inc. Maska advises companies and organizations on strategy and communications engagements. Maska also hosts the chart topping political podcast, Press Advance, a podcast exploring how we move past political division for progress Americans can agree on.
Before that Maska was host of Pod Is A Woman, a show recognized as one of the best political podcasts of the 2020 presidential cycle by TIME Magazine, Cosmopolitan and Pop Sugar, with guests ranging from Dr. Jill Biden to Natalie Portman. Maska moved to Los Angeles as Vice President of Marketing and Communications at the Los Angeles Times, recruited at the time by a vision of supporting local journalism. Maska is an expert on communication strategy, politics, and the cross currents that shape them. She regularly writes about the necessity of local fair journalism and finding shared values between political parties.
Maska’s perspective is informed by her childhood growing up in the central Illinois city of Galesburg, a politically divided and economically struggling community. Growing up there taught her the importance of finding common ground — and engaging in vigorous, healthy debates.
Maska is a graduate of the University of Kansas, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with degrees in history and journalism. After departing the White House she served as a Fellow at the University's Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics. She’s taught courses in politics and communications strategy at the University of Southern California and lives with her family in Los Angeles.
Maska spent more than eight years working with President Barack Obama, a journey that began as one of his early hires in 2007 on his historic Iowa Caucus campaign, and ended at the White House. With President Obama, Maska played an important role in two victorious presidential campaigns and set the stage for history, directing his events and engagements in more than 40 countries and in almost every state. Before that, Maska worked in Iowa and Kansas on campaigns and in state government.
As CEO of Global Situation Room, Inc. Maska advises companies and organizations on strategy and communications engagements. Maska also hosts the chart topping political podcast, Press Advance, a podcast exploring how we move past political division for progress Americans can agree on.
Before that Maska was host of Pod Is A Woman, a show recognized as one of the best political podcasts of the 2020 presidential cycle by TIME Magazine, Cosmopolitan and Pop Sugar, with guests ranging from Dr. Jill Biden to Natalie Portman. Maska moved to Los Angeles as Vice President of Marketing and Communications at the Los Angeles Times, recruited at the time by a vision of supporting local journalism. Maska is an expert on communication strategy, politics, and the cross currents that shape them. She regularly writes about the necessity of local fair journalism and finding shared values between political parties.
Maska’s perspective is informed by her childhood growing up in the central Illinois city of Galesburg, a politically divided and economically struggling community. Growing up there taught her the importance of finding common ground — and engaging in vigorous, healthy debates.
Maska is a graduate of the University of Kansas, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with degrees in history and journalism. After departing the White House she served as a Fellow at the University's Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics. She’s taught courses in politics and communications strategy at the University of Southern California and lives with her family in Los Angeles.
Speaking At
