Jae S. Ha (pronounced "Jay") is a tenured Associate Professor in the School of Communication & Media at the University of Illinois Springfield. Before entering academia, he worked for more than a decade as a reporter for The JoongAng Daily, one of South Korea's leading national newspapers. His professional journalism experience informs both his research and teaching, bridging media practice with scholarly inquiry.

Dr. Ha's research examines journalism, disinformation, fact-checking, artificial intelligence, digital media literacy, political communication, and international media. His recent scholarship focuses on how generative AI is transforming information verification, democratic discourse, and digital epistemology. He has published extensively in leading peer-reviewed journals including Journalism Practice, Journalism Studies, International Communication Gazette, Newspaper Research Journal, The Social Science Journal, and Journal of Gender Studies.

At UIS, Dr. Ha teaches courses in artificial intelligence & ethics, fake news & fact-checking, global media & communication, journalism & democracy, and social & cultural Effects of mass media. He has developed several innovative courses and General Education offerings that integrate emerging technologies with critical media literacy.

His scholarship has received numerous recognitions, including the Faculty Excellence Award for Scholarship (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences), the AEJMC International Communication Teaching Award, and the AEJMC Asian Journal of Communication Best Paper Award. He currently serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of International Communication Gazette and the Editorial Board of Asian Communication Research while actively collaborating with scholars and journalists around the world.