Rate My Professor Aaron Brown

Aaron Brown served as the inaugural Walter Cronkite Professor of Journalism at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, joining the full-time faculty in January 2008 and continuing until 2014. Earlier, in Spring 2007, he held the John J. Rhodes Chair in Public Policy and American Institutions at ASU's Barrett Honors College while also serving on the Cronkite School faculty. In these roles, he taught a course on news media issues, delivered major speeches on the Tempe campus, participated in interviews such as a live satellite discussion with Walter Cronkite, and interacted extensively with students and faculty. Brown taught full-time at the Cronkite School, contributing to events like election night coverage centers, high school journalism conventions where he provided keynote addresses, and tributes to the school's namesake. He narrated the Cronkite School's South Africa project featured on KAET's 'Eight World' program.

Prior to his academic appointments at ASU, Brown anchored CNN's flagship evening news program, NewsNight with Aaron Brown, from 2001 to 2005. During this period, he covered pivotal events including the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the 2004 U.S. presidential election, and the Iraq War. Additionally, in 2009, he hosted the second season of the PBS international affairs series Wide Angle, presenting in-depth global stories. Brown's distinguished journalism career earned him a Peabody Award and two Edward R. Murrow Awards. His tenure at ASU emphasized practical journalism education, mentorship of students, and engagement in public discourse on media and public policy, leaving a lasting impact on the field of communications through his transition from broadcast anchor to educator.