Our Writers

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Ben Hancock studied journalism at West Virginia University. Both athletics and family roots contributed to Ben?s decision to study at WVU ? he has been a Mountaineers fan since he was young, and many generations of his family are from Morgantown. He worked briefly as a staffer for the Daily Athenaeum and completed a college fellowship at the Poynter Institute.Now a magazine concentrator at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Ben seeks to tell stories that aren’t told. Follow Ben at @benjarad.
London-born multimedia journalist, Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani is a columnist for the Financial Times.  Her “Culture Corner” style column can be read in the Life and Arts pages of the FT Weekend.  Before studying for her Master’s in broadcast journalism at Columbia, she was a staff writer at London’s Mail on Sunday and previously freelanced regularly for diary pages of The Daily Telegraph and The Independent. She read English at Oxford University and has a love of old-smelling books, fashion, music and spending weekends at MOMA.
Andrew Bell is a graduate student at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He graduated from Trinity College, where he co-founded the school’s first online Newspaper, 4legs. He has also blogged for the Huffington Post. Andrew is also an aspiring screenwriter, playwright and director. He recently directed an innovative take on Donizetti’s legendary opera L’elisir D’amore for Divaria Productions, which was performed on the New York off-Broadway stage and will go on tour later this year. He’s at @andrewbell33 or ajb2214@columbia.edu
Ryan Neal is a proud Californian, snowboarder, ex-bartender extraordinaire and professional bringer of good times. He currently lives in New York, studying journalism and using his free time to write about music, film, sports and politics. He loves the big buildings, but wishes there were more trees. He has written for “The Santa Barbara Independent,” “The Sacramento News & Review,” “The Summit Daily News,” and Virgin.com’s music blog, RedRoom. You can follow him on Twitter @ryanwneal, and check out his website.
Anna Codrea-Rado came to New York from across the pond, where she worked as a community manager at the Guardian in London. Before that she was an editorial assistant at Imperial College London’s alumni magazine. She has a BA in English Literature from Durham University and is currently doing her master’s at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. She writes about electronic music for The Palette and continues her search for a decent cuppa in New York. Contact her via email: ac3403@columbia.edu or Twitter: @annacod.
Lukas Heim is a journalism student and lawyer from Switzerland. Before coming to New York, he worked as a human rights expert in Chad, Indonesia and Europe with a focus on media freedom and refugee law. He is passionate about theater and loves to report and write about it.
Danny Kanamori is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
Sergey Gordeev is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
Myeisha Essex is in love with all things pop culture, thanks in large part to her hometown of Los Angeles. She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism and media studies from Bennett College for Women, where she served as creative director and co-founder of Belle Magazine. She’s currently pursuing a master’s degree at Columbia University with a specialization in magazine reporting. Essex has worked as an intern at the Wendy Williams Show, KJLH Radio, Malibu Magazine, Sister 2 Sister and the New York Times Student Journalism Institute. She serves as treasurer of the Columbia University chapter of the Association of Black Journalists. Follow her @MyeishaEssex
Brian Steiner is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and Duke University School of Medicine.  He is interested in both the Arts and Sciences, and plans to write for magazines on both cultural and medical topics.
Nicole Anderson is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
Rani Molla is a reader, writer and reporter of many genres, including arts, culture, science, ideas, politics, education and more. She also takes photographs, makes movies and creates data visualizations. She has published work in the Santa Fe Reporter, TIME Magazine, Urban Glass, The New York World, Wall Street Journal’s Metropolis blog and Gothamist. Currently she is studying digital media at Columbia Journalism School, where she contribues to The Palette. Twitter: @ranimolla 
Ali Leskowitz grew up just outside of Philadelphia. She graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. in English and a secondary in dramatic arts. She enjoys writing about and watching theater and spends much of her time discussing entertainment, the arts, and pop culture. She gets her heart broken yearly by her beloved Philly sports teams. Twitter: @aleskowitz
Alex Bell is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
Zach Stoloff is a music and sports journalist who has written for publications like The Santa Cruz Sentinel, The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, and A’s Magazine and Giants Magazine. Most of his music writing can be found at Good Times weekly, out of Santa Cruz, California, where he has interviewed far too many indie rock bands. When he’s not writing about music or sports, he can usually be found attending concerts or sporting events, proving that his interests aren’t very diverse.
Neha Banka is a student at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.