Michael Mitsanas

Sen. Michael Mitsanas is a Master of Science candidate at Columbia Journalism School, a Toni Stabile Fellow in Investigative Journalism, an Officer of the Graduate Student Government, a University Senator, and a freelance investigative reporter. His coverage has appeared in TIME Magazine, CNN International, NBC News, and other outlets, often revealing how decisions made in the halls of power shape the lives of real people. Michael has interviewed small business owners in Busan, a seaside port city in South Korea, to understand how U.S. trade policy affects their revenue streams; documented the Myanmar junta’s use of hunger as a “weapon of war” in Rakhine State; chronicled South Korean activists’ decades-long push for anti-discrimination legislation; and co-authored a TIME investigation exposing how central government data restrictions hamper local suicide prevention policy programs in South Korea. As a breaking news reporter, Michael covered stories at the nexus of law, politics, and global affairs. His reporting spanned the special counsel’s indictments of President Donald J. Trump, the 2024 GOP primary, the Russo-Ukrainian War, the Justice Department’s investigation of Hunter Biden, Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s blockade of military promotions, the Sudanese Civil War, state-level election law battles, the 2023 NATO summit, Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s diplomatic visit to China, the indictment of former CIA analyst Sue Mi Terry, and U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Michael holds a B.A. in International Studies from the American University School of International Service, and he is a member of the Overseas Press Club (OPC), Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE), and the National Association of LGBTQ Journalists (NLGJA). He speaks intermediate Korean and basic Greek.