Jill Dougherty

Jill Dougherty (BA Russian ’70) serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies at Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service. She concurrently works as a CNN contributor on Russia issues, drawing from her decade-long tenure as CNN's Moscow Bureau Chief and prior experience covering the White House and U.S. State Department.

Her research centers on disinformation tactics and youth dynamics in contemporary Russia, with extensive fieldwork across the Baltic countries and Georgia. She examines geopolitical shifts in Eurasia through the lens of media narratives and statecraft, emphasizing how Kremlin policies impact regional stability and societal development.

Dougherty is the author of My Russia: What I Saw Inside the Kremlin, which analyzes Vladimir Putin's strategic use of conflict—including the Ukraine invasion, military partnerships with Iran and North Korea, and weapons proliferation in Africa—as tools for domestic consolidation despite risks to Russia's long-term welfare. Her upcoming lecture at the University of Michigan (September 9, 2025) will address whether Putin's 'eternal war' doctrine threatens his political survival.