FOUNDER & CEO

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

FOUNDER

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.

Juliane created Lie Detectors and directs its strategy and development. She has advised governments, policy-makers and the EU on countering disinformation and polarisation, including within the EU’s 2018 High-Level Expert Group on Fake News and co-wrote EU recommendations as part of the 2022 Digital Literacy Expert Group. Juliane’s design of the Lie Detectors’ concept, its scripts and training approach has been recognised through numerous awards. To found Lie Detectors, Juliane put aside an award-winning journalism career where she wrote for The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Reuters, MLex and Spiegel Online among others. She holds degrees from New York’s Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and the University of Edinburgh and speaks English, German, Spanish and French.

Treasurer

Anne MacGregor is a Managing Director in the Strategic Communications segment at FTI Consulting and is based in Brussels. Prior to joining FTI Consulting, Anne practised competition and trade law in Brussels and Washington, D.C. for 25 years. She stepped out of law practice for two stints as a specialist antitrust journalist, first at MLex and later launching and leading the Brussels Bureau of the investigatory news service The Capitol Forum.

Board Member

Divina is Professor of Media and ICT Sociology at Sorbonne Nouvelle University, France. She holds degrees from the Sorbonne University, Stanford University and Annenberg School for Communications. She specialises in Cultural Diversity, Internet Governance and Media and Information Literacy (MIL) and researches the media uses and practices of young people. She holds the UNESCO chair “Savoir-devenir in sustainable digital development: mastering information cultures” (2013--) and she serves as an expert on MIL for UNESCO, the Council of Europe and the European Union.

Board Member

Karin is the Managing Director of Datapraxis and a seasoned data expert and organisation-builder. She served as the General Secretary of the UK Co-operative Party (a sister party to Labour), set up the aid transparency organisation Publish What You Fund and chaired the open data non-profit Open Knowledge Foundation. After graduating in PPE (Politics, Philosophy and Economics) from Oxford University, she obtained Master’s degrees from Sussex and East Anglia Universities. She started her career as an aid and public finance expert in international development.

Founding Association Member

Willi was a highly valued advisor to Lie Detectors. He helped shape its founding strategy and partnerships and brought visibility to Lie Detectors from its inception. After retiring from a distinguished career in journalism, Willi became one of Lie Detectors’ most prolific and well-liked classroom mentors. His insights continue to contribute to the organisation’s development. He is greatly missed.

Founding Association Member

Magda has been involved with Lie Detectors as a co-founder since 2017. She is the Deputy Director of the Greenpeace European Unit, based in Brusssels. Earlier she worked as a Director for Friends of the Earth Europe and as the EU Affairs Co-ordinator for CEE Bankwatch. She graduated in European Affairs and has a Master’s in Literature from Jagielloński University and a postgraduate qualification in Public Relations from Krakow University of Economics.

Executive Director and Founder

Juliane created Lie Detectors and directs its strategy and development. She has advised governments, policy-makers and the EU on countering disinformation and polarisation, including within the EU’s 2018 High-Level Expert Group on Fake News and co-wrote EU recommendations as part of the 2022 Digital Literacy Expert Group. Juliane’s design of the Lie Detectors’ concept, its scripts and training approach has been recognised through numerous awards. To found Lie Detectors, Juliane put aside an award-winning journalism career where she wrote for The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Reuters, MLex and Spiegel Online among others. She holds degrees from New York’s Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and the University of Edinburgh and speaks English, German, Spanish and French.

Operations Director

Marielle oversees finance and budgets, legal compliance, human resources and organisational administration at Lie Detectors. Marielle brings extensive experience in these fields thanks to decades spent respectively as Director of Administration and Finance at the Brussels-based Council of European Municipalities and Regions and holding different administrative positions at the International Development Law Organization in Rome. Previously Marielle oversaw finance training at the Financial Times group in London.

International Programme Director

Margit oversees the work of Lie Detectors’ country programmes and their implementation of Lie Detectors’ mission and strategy. Within senior leadership, she designs annual country-level impact goals and takes a leading role designing partnership agreements. Margit oversees roll-out of new training activities and their quality control. She regularly trains journalists and teachers, participates in the strategic design of new training modules for Lie Detectors’ communities. Previously, Margit worked for several years in event management and for a news agency, gaining strong management skills and insights into the work of journalists. Margit graduated from Hamburg University.

Senior Advisor – Education Strategy and Development

Annemieke leads the design and development of Lie Detectors’ whole-school approach. Her work is informed by her experience of the State Institute for School and Media in Berlin-Brandenburg (LISUM) and her ongoing work as Head of IT & Media and teaching Media Studies at Berlin’s Nelson Mandela School, where her work resulted in numerous media awards and an official excellence designation. Annemieke previously held senior management roles at international broadcast organisations in the UK and Netherlands. She holds degrees in Communication Science and Pedagogy and as a doctoral candidate at Humboldt University in Berlin, she conducted research on the impact of authentic digital learning environments on student agency.

Communications Director

Joe is responsible for delivering impactful communications about Lie Detectors and for its teams and communities. He has 20 years of experience in communications, working for science and education organisations, including the UK-based Institute of Physics (IOP), and leading UK multi-academy trust and education charity Ark. Joe holds a graduate degree from the University of Oxford and a postgraduate qualification in journalism.

Executive Assistant

Esther assists the Executive Director with planning and scheduling of external representation and takes a leading role in planning Lie Detectors’ public-facing priorities. She joined Lie Detectors after holding similar roles in the private sector as well as having experience working with children and education. She holds a Master’s degree in English Literature and Philosophy from the University of East Anglia.

Outreach & Policy Officer

Rayan supports Lie Detectors’ cooperation with civil society, media and policymakers and tracks policy developments in education and digital rights. He advises the senior team and helps keep Lie Detectors communities abreast of relevant developments in the fields of education and digital reforms. Previously Rayan worked as a radio host and journalist. He holds a Master’s degree in Political Communication and speaks French, English, Dutch and Spanish.

International Programme Director

Sinem Şahin supports Lie Detectors’ training programming in Europe, the roll-out of new training activities and work with teams in new regions. She helps ensure consistent standards and participates in Lie Detectors’ cooperation with researchers. Sinem holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Studies and French Studies and speaks English, German, Dutch, French and Turkish.

International Programme Associate

Jade-Ihintza supports the International Program Department, particularly for our classroom visits in Switzerland. She was previously an Administration Trainee at the Lie Detectors office in Brussels, before moving to the International Programme as an associate. She studied Law at La Sorbonne, Political Sciences and Economics at the Catholic Institute of Paris and holds a Master’s degree from the University of Kent in International Law and International Relations.

Senior Operations Officer

Ruxandra supports the Operations Director in ensuring efficient and effective operations across the organisation, with a focus on finance and human resources. She came to Lie Detectors with more than eight years’ experience in similar roles, using analytical and communication skills and a flexible approach to solving day-to-day problems. She holds a Master’s degree in Finance and Banking from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest.

Operations Associate

Nele supports Lie Detectors’ systems and processes. She also supports the team with logistics, IT, internal reporting and administrative tasks. Nele holds a Master’s degree in Literature from Ghent University as well as a degree in Conflict and Development Studies and has conducted field work on citizen journalism. She speaks Dutch, French, English and German.

Head of Austria Programme

Thomas coordinates Lie Detectors’ activities in Austria, designing country-level strategy and delivering training for journalists. His work is informed by his co-founding and ongoing leadership of leading Austrian media literacy non-profit Digitaler Kompass. Thomas previously worked as a journalist for various media in Vienna and as a Research Fellow at the Department of Communication at University of Vienna. During his Master’s thesis in journalism and communication science, he analysed possible solutions to the increasing amount of disinformation on the internet.

Austria Programme Associate

Julia supports the organisation and coordination of school visits and workshops in Austria. She holds a Master’s degree in Management of Social and Health Organisations and worked previously in social NGOs in Germany and Chile.

Head of Belgium Programme

Lies coordinates Lie Detectors’ training programmes in Belgium, designing country-level strategy and delivering training for Belgian and international journalists. She is an accomplished project manager with more than 25 years’ experience in both public and private sectors, including science communication and press relations at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, advocacy for the European educational organisation effe, teaching and production assistance at various media, such as RTL-west, Deutsche Welle and ORF. She studied history and political sciences in Essen, and speaks English, French, Dutch and German.

Belgium Programme Associate

Andres works with the Head of Belgium Programme to deliver Lie Detectors’ training in Belgium. He holds a Master’s degree in Communications and Public Relations from the Catholic University of Louvain. He speaks French, Spanish and English.

Head of Germany Programme

Annkatrin heads Lie Detectors’ training activities in Germany, managing operations and implementing Lie Detectors’ strategy and activities with a large country-level pool of coordinators and trainers. She represents Lie Detectors as second chair of Germany’s media literacy asssociation Journalismus macht Schule and has overseen and helped build a German-speaking training programme in Switzerland. Annkatrin is an experienced non-profit professional who previously led the Europe Division of Stiftung Mercator. She holds a master’s degree in political sciences and studied philosophy and economics in Germany and Turkey.

Cologne Network Coordinator

Ann-Kathrin is a freelance reporter for German public radio. A research trip to the US sensitised her to the issues surrounding media quality and media ethics, prompting her to set up news-literacy workshops and classroom visits upon her return to Germany. Following a meeting at a specialist conference dedicated to the subject, Ann-Kathrin and Lie Detectors decided to join forces. She has since built up a network of journalists and schools for Lie Detectors in and around Cologne and manages its organisation. She regularly delivers training for journalists, classrooms and teachers.

Hamburg Network Coordinator

Julia Kuttner is a freelance journalist. Amongst other things she works for ARD-aktuell in Hamburg and writes for tagesschau.de. She spent several years working on the social media desk of tagesschau. Since Autumn 2018 she visits classrooms with Lie Detectors. Julia established the network of schools and journalists for Lie Detectors in Hamburg. Furthermore, she organises classroom visits in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein and trains journalists for their own Lie Detectors’ classroom visits. She regularly delivers training for teachers.

Network Coordinator for Lie Detectors in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia

Based in Leipzig, Sven is a freelance TV reporter for German public broadcaster MDR and a contributor for ARD Aktuell and major German news programmes including Tagesschau and Tagesthemen. Sven is one of Lie Detectors’ first participating journalists and has been visiting schools with Lie Detectors since 2018. Since 2020 he is responsible for creating networks of journalists and participating schools in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. He regularly trains journalists to deliver Lie Detectors’ workshops.

Germany Programme Associate

Maxime assists the German office of Lie Detectors in the organisation and coordination of school visits and journalist workshops. He studied cultural studies and media culture analysis in Germany as well as in Slovenia and Belgium. Having already worked with Lie Detectors during his Master’s, he rejoined the organisation after gathering further experience in the non-profit sector.

Working Student Project Administration, Germany

Marica supports the delivery and administration of Lie Detectors’ German programming. Previously, she gained experience in assisting with projects and administrative work. She holds two Bachelor degrees from the University of Göttingen and is currently pursuing her Master in Governance and Public Policy at the University of Passau.

Working Student Project Administration, Germany

Cindy supports the delivery and administration of Lie Detectors’ German programming. She is currently studying Philosophy and Computer Science at the Free University of Berlin.

Poland Programme Coordinator

Anna has built up Lie Detectors’ network in Poland and coordinates all training activities in the country. She is the EU correspondent of Rzeczpospolita in Brussels and trains children in media literacy there.

Communications Trainee

Cecilia assists Lie Detectors’ digital communications and brand guardianship. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Security Studies from The Australian National University and has a background in communications and education.

Outreach and Educational Development Trainee

Hamid supports Lie Detectors on outreach and policy as well as our teacher-training team. He has a master’s degree in political science from The University of Liège and speaks English, French, Italian, Arabic and Berber.

Belgium Programme Trainee

Valentin supports training and programming in Belgium. He holds a bachelor’s in law from the University of Rennes 1 and a master’s degree in EU studies from the Université Catholique de Louvain.

Strategic Advisor – Partnerships and Development

Eric brings more than 30 years of media experience to the table. After originally starting out in broadcast television in his native Germany, he has been a grant proposal and bid developer since 2007, specialising in journalism, communications and civil society, with his focus on funding opportunities offered by the European Union and international philanthropic foundations. He advises and supports non-profits as well as for-profit companies and higher education institutions in Europe and around the world. On the side, Eric works as an author and evaluator. He believes that the work of Lie Detectors is crucial to (re-)build and maintain trust in quality journalism from the bottom up.

Media Expert & Senior Consultant

Jochen coordinates research and cooperation projects for Germany’s international public service broadcaster Deutsche Welle. His focus is on social newsgathering, verification of user-generated content and the use of eyewitness media for news reporting. He has a leading role in projects including REVEAL, InVID, Truly Media and WeVerify. Jochen also lectures at the Free University Berlin in Media & Communication Sciences. He is the author of the book The BBC in Transition and a number of papers, articles and book chapters. Previous to joining Deutsche Welle, Jochen was COO and Editor-in-Chief at a new media company and worked for BBC News & Current Affairs in radio and TV. Jochen supports Lie Detectors in its quest to bring media literacy into classrooms and raise awareness among young people on (news) media issues.

Founding Association Member & Senior Consultant

Willi was a highly valued advisor to Lie Detectors. He helped shape its founding strategy and partnerships and brought visibility to Lie Detectors from its inception. After retiring from a distinguished career in journalism, Willi became one of Lie Detectors’ most prolific and well-liked classroom mentors. His insights continue to contribute to the organisation’s development. He is greatly missed.