Manny Garcia
Knight Foundation Executive Director, the Lee Caplin School of Journalism & Media
Florida International University
Manny García is the inaugural Knight Foundation Executive Director at Florida International University's Lee Caplin School of Journalism & Media.
His work is focused on how journalism evolves in an AI-driven, platform-fragmented world—examining how news organizations can better understand audience behavior, rebuild trust, and develop sustainable models that protect local accountability reporting while adapting to emerging technologies. Central to that mission is preparing the next generation of Caplin student journalists to understand not only storytelling, but the business of media—developing future leaders who can navigate both editorial excellence and long-term sustainability.
A veteran news executive, García has spent decades leading newsrooms, developing talent, and driving growth across some of the nation’s most respected media organizations.
As Executive Editor of the Austin American-Statesman, he led the newsroom’s coverage of the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 fourth graders and their two teachers were killed. The reporting exposed false narratives of police heroism and revealed critical failures in law enforcement’s response.
That work was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, earned a national Edward R. Murrow Award, and shared the duPont-Columbia Award.
García was also named the Benjamin C. Bradlee Editor of the Year by the National Press Foundation and was included in POLITICO’s Power List, recognizing leaders shaping the intersection of race, culture, and policy.
Earlier, as Texas Editor for the ProPublica–Texas Tribune investigative initiative, he launched a $5 million, grant-funded effort to expand accountability journalism across the Lone Star State. He has also held senior leadership roles with the USA Today Network and led newsrooms including Houston Landing, the Naples Daily News, el Nuevo Herald, and the Miami Herald, where he served as Senior News Editor.
Throughout his career, García’s investigative reporting and leadership have resulted in Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism, exposed corruption, led to the arrest of public officials, changed Florida law, and helped free a man wrongfully convicted of murder.
A longtime advocate for press freedom and investigative reporting, he serves on the board of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. He is also a former board member and president of Investigative Reporters & Editors.
Born in Havana and raised in Miami, García is a graduate of Miami Dade College and Florida International University.
His work is focused on how journalism evolves in an AI-driven, platform-fragmented world—examining how news organizations can better understand audience behavior, rebuild trust, and develop sustainable models that protect local accountability reporting while adapting to emerging technologies. Central to that mission is preparing the next generation of Caplin student journalists to understand not only storytelling, but the business of media—developing future leaders who can navigate both editorial excellence and long-term sustainability.
A veteran news executive, García has spent decades leading newsrooms, developing talent, and driving growth across some of the nation’s most respected media organizations.
As Executive Editor of the Austin American-Statesman, he led the newsroom’s coverage of the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 fourth graders and their two teachers were killed. The reporting exposed false narratives of police heroism and revealed critical failures in law enforcement’s response.
That work was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, earned a national Edward R. Murrow Award, and shared the duPont-Columbia Award.
García was also named the Benjamin C. Bradlee Editor of the Year by the National Press Foundation and was included in POLITICO’s Power List, recognizing leaders shaping the intersection of race, culture, and policy.
Earlier, as Texas Editor for the ProPublica–Texas Tribune investigative initiative, he launched a $5 million, grant-funded effort to expand accountability journalism across the Lone Star State. He has also held senior leadership roles with the USA Today Network and led newsrooms including Houston Landing, the Naples Daily News, el Nuevo Herald, and the Miami Herald, where he served as Senior News Editor.
Throughout his career, García’s investigative reporting and leadership have resulted in Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism, exposed corruption, led to the arrest of public officials, changed Florida law, and helped free a man wrongfully convicted of murder.
A longtime advocate for press freedom and investigative reporting, he serves on the board of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. He is also a former board member and president of Investigative Reporters & Editors.
Born in Havana and raised in Miami, García is a graduate of Miami Dade College and Florida International University.
