The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law today announced the appointment of Lisa Benenson as Vice President for Communications and Strategy. Benenson will serve on the organization’s executive management team, and will lead the Brennan Center’s communications strategies and initiatives, marketing and brand, and digital presence.
Benenson joins Brennan Center from the United Nations, where she served as Deputy Director of Communications for UNICEF. In her new role, she will help lead the Center’s efforts to protect our democracy and the right to vote, promote equal justice, and secure our civil liberties.
“As we head into a pivotal election year, Lisa brings a deep knowledge of how to persuade the public and reach new audiences,” said Michael Waldman, President of the Brennan Center. “We believe passionately that to win policy and legal change, we must win in the court of public opinion. Lisa will be a catalyst for change, bolstering our strategic communications and public engagement, and helping ensure that the Center remains the leading, indispensable voice on the critical challenges that threaten our systems of democracy and justice.”
“It’s an honor to serve this storied organization,” said Benenson. “The Brennan Center has been fighting to protect and preserve America’s cherished ideals for more than 20 years, and I look forward to contributing to that important work.”
Prior to her role at UNICEF, Benenson was the Chief Communications Officer for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and was the senior vice president for marketing and communications at the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.
Before her work in nonprofits, Benenson was a journalist, serving as a senior executive at Newsweek and The Daily Beast, and as editor in chief of several magazines – Hallmark Magazine, Working Mother, and Working Woman. She worked as a reporter for Newsday and The Denver Post, and has appeared on NBC Nightly News, NBC’s Today Show, Oprah, ABC’s Good Morning America, and The Fox Report.
The Brennan Center was founded over two decades ago by family members and former clerks of the late Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. The organization serves as a living memorial to the ideals that Justice Brennan worked to achieve during his 34 years on the court.
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