Jean Seaton

Jean Seaton is Professor of Media History and the Official Historian of the BBC at the University of Westminster's Westminster School of Media and Communications, where she directs the Communication and Media Research Institute. She has served as Director of the Orwell Foundation since 2007 and co-created the FCDO Chevening South Asian Journalists Programme.

Professor Seaton's research spans media history, BBC history, politics and media relations, public service broadcasting, and media's impact on society. Her work explores critical intersections between media, politics, conflict, and cultural identity, with particular attention to the BBC's role in British public life. She has published extensively on media coverage of wars, the Holocaust, revolutions, and security issues, as well as examining how media shapes political understanding and national identity.

Her publication trends reveal consistent engagement with the evolving media landscape, particularly focusing on BBC's role through political crises, technological changes, and social transformations. Her recent work addresses contemporary challenges including digital transformation, misinformation in the pandemic era, Brexit coverage, and the future of public service broadcasting in an increasingly fragmented media environment.

• International Communication Association's Fellows Book Award (2019) for Power Without Responsibility
• Thank-Offering to Britain Fellowship for work on BBC and Holocaust

Professor Seaton has supervised numerous doctoral students working on BBC history, political communication, and media studies topics. She has received research funding from prestigious bodies including AHRC, BBC, British Academy, and Leverhulme Trust. Her policy engagement includes chairing public enquiries on broadcasting of Parliament and children's media representation for the Home Office. She serves on editorial boards of Political Quarterly, Twentieth Century British History, and Media History, and is a founding member of media accountability organizations including Full Fact and the Reuters Institute.