Jonathan Peters named Grady College associate dean and Carter Chair

Jonathan Peters speaks to a group of graduates.
Jonathan Peters has been named associate dean for academic affairs and the Carolyn McKenzie and the Don E. Carter Chair for Excellence in Journalism. (Photo/Sarah E. Freeman)

Jonathan Peters named Grady College associate dean and Carter Chair

July 01, 2025

Grady College proudly announces Jonathan Peters has been named associate dean for academic affairs and the Carolyn McKenzie and Don E. Carter Chair for Excellence in Journalism.

“I am so pleased to announce this appointment,” Charles N. Davis, dean of Grady College, said. “Dr. Peters is a proven leader who is tailor made for this position, and I look forward to working closely with him.”

Peters assumes the associate dean role held most recently by Janice Hume, who retired at the end of the spring semester. Peters was previously head of the Department of Journalism.

Peters, who holds an affiliate faculty position in the UGA School of Law, specializes in media law and policy. His research focuses on how technological and political forces can affect media law frameworks and how media law principles can evolve in response to changes in news and social media.

His research has appeared in the Berkeley Technology Law Journal, the Harvard Law and Policy Review, the Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment and Technology Law, the First Amendment Law Review and the Federal Communications Law Journal, among others.

In addition to his teaching and research, Peters has written about legal issues for Vanity Fair, Esquire, The Atlantic, Slate, Wired, NBC, CNN and Nieman Reports. He also has written about the NHL for Sports Illustrated, and he is a frequent commentator on media law for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and various broadcast networks.

Peters is a volunteer First Amendment lawyer for several nonprofits, and he is serving a four-year term on the Panel of Experts on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association within the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). It is an advisory body to the 57 countries in the OSCE region. Peters was president of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation in 2024, and he served as head of the Law and Policy Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication from 2023 to 2024. 

After receiving the Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, Peters was honored on Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium during the Georgia vs. South Carolina game in 2021. (Photo/Jonathan Peters)

In 2021, Peters was one of just three UGA faculty members to receive the Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, which is the university’s highest early-career teaching honor. Before that, in 2019, he was recognized as the Department of Journalism’s “Teacher of the Year.”

Peters has a B.S. in journalism from Ohio University, a J.D. from Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. in journalism from the University of Missouri.


Carter Chair for Excellence in Journalism

The purpose of the Carter Chair, which Peters assumed in June, is to support teaching, research, and public service activities that emphasize the journalistic values essential to a democratic society—values that honor the legacies of Don and Carolyn Carter.

“The Carter Chair is one of the college’s most important assets, and Dr. Peters is ideally situated to ensure that its use benefits students and faculty alike,” Davis said.

Don Carter (ABJ ’38) began his career as the editor-in-chief at The Red & Black before working as a reporter and editor at multiple newspapers across the county, including positions in Atlanta, New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami. He was the founding managing editor of The National Observer before serving as vice president for news at Knight-Ridder, until his retirement in 1982.

Carolyn Carter (ABJ ’40) was the first full-time female photographer at the Atlanta Constitution, and she later worked as a writer and photographer at the Atlanta Journal Sunday Magazine. She also worked at The Coca-Cola Company as a writer and editor. In retirement, she was active in civic organizations.

The Carters, who were married for more than 67 years, met while covering the same story for competing newspapers—Carolyn for the Atlanta Constitution and Don for the Atlanta Journal.

Peters is the third Carter Chair. John Greenman was the first, until his retirement, and Hume was the second.


Author: Sarah E. Freeman, freemans@uga.edu