Foundation

The Helsingin Sanomat Foundation is a private, non-profit organization. Its purpose is to promote and support high-level research and the implementation of freedom of speech.

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Board of trustees
  • Antero Mukka (chairman)

    Antero Mukka (b. 1967) was elected chairman of the board of trustees in 2020. He has been a member of the board since 2019. Mukka is Editor-in-Chief in Helsingin Sanomat.

    Antero Mukka graduated from Pello highschool in 1986. He got his Master´s degree from the University of Tampere. Mukka acted as chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Tampere University Student Association during 1991-1993. Since 2015 he has been the chairman of the Board of Trustees of Onni V. Tuisku Foundation. Mukka has been the deputy member in the Finnish News Agency STT since 2019.

    Mukka started his journalistic career working as a summer reporter in the newspapers Pohjola Sanomat and Kaleva during 1989-1993. In Helsingin Sanomat he worked for the first time in 1994 and he has been permanently employed since 1995. Before nominated Editor-in-Chief Mukka has been working as news reporter, news editor and head of the domestic editorial staff and as Managing Editor during 2007-2014. Antero Mukka was nominated Editor-in-Chief in 2014.

  • Pirjo Hiidenmaa (vice chair)

    Pirjo Hiidenmaa (b. 1959) was elected first vice chair of the board of trustees in 2021. Before that she was second vice chair for one year, a member for two years and a deputy member for one year. Professor Hiidenmaa is Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Helsinki. She earned her PhD in 1995 at the University of Helsinki (dissertation on Finnish language).

    Previously Pirjo Hiidenmaa has been Director of the Continuing Education Center Palmenia  (2013–2014), Director of the Open University at University of Helsinki (2011–2012), Director of Cultural and Social Studies Unit in the Academy of Finland (2006–2011), Senior Researcher at the Research Centre for the Languages of Finland (1993–2006) and Head of Department, Research Centre for the Languages of Finland (1998–2006). She has also worked as lecturer at the University of Helsinki, Department of the Finnish Language (1991–1992), as language advisor at the Bank of Finland (1988–1993), as Journalist, Suomen Lääkärilehti (Finnish Medical Journal) 1986–1988 and as Researcher at the Research Centre for the Languages of Finland (1984–1986).

    Professor Hiidenmaa’s research interests are non-fiction, science communication, and text and discourse analysis.

  • Pekka Aula (2. vice chair)

    Pekka Aula (b. 1967) has been in the board of trustees since 2020, first as a deputy member and as a member and second chair since 2021. Before that he was a deputy member for one year. Professor Pekka Aula is the Secretary General at the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters. Previously he held the positions of Professor of Communication at the University of Helsinki and Professor of Innovation Communication at the Lappeenranta University of Technology. Aula defended his doctoral dissertation in 1999 at the Faculty of Social Science in University of Helsinki.

    Aula has close to fifteen years working experience as a professor in the area of communication and media studies. His has a vast experience in the special fields of reputation management, corporate and communication and PR, digital communication, and media. Aula’s research concentrates on the social and emotional aspects of reputation and elucidates the digital publicity, such as social media, as a communicative context for reputational dynamics.

    Aula has published widely. His recent books include Strategic Reputation Management: Towards a Company of Good, by Routledge, and The Reputable Firm: How Digitalization of Communication Is Revolutionizing Reputation Management, by Springer. Aula has done international research in The Netherlands and in the United States, including Stanford University. In 2012–2013, Aula acted as the Head of Discipline of Media and Communication Studies at the University of Helsinki.

    Professor Aula is a member of the International Science Council (ISC) Outreach and Engagement Committee. He has been a member of the Steering Committee of Ministry of Education and Culture’s Team Finland Knowledge and a member of the Scientific Committee of Helsingin Sanomat Foundation. In addition, Aula has acted actively as an advisor in both the public and business sector organizations.

    For more information, please visit pekkaaula.wordpress.com.

  • Anu Koivunen

    Anu Koivunen (b. 1967) has been in the board of trustees since 2018, first as a deputy member and as a member since 2020.

    Koivunen received her PhD (media studies) at University of Turku in 2003. She is Professor of Gender Studies at the same university. In 2018-2021 she was Professor of Gender Studies at University of Tampere.

    From 2005 to 2023 Koivunen worked at Stockholm University, first as a lecturer and in 2012-2023 as Professor of Cinema Studies.

    From 2015 to 2017 Koivunen worked as a senior researcher in a project called Driving Forces of Democracy: Context and Character of the Democracies in Finland and Sweden, 1890–2020. The project was conducted at Helsinki University and funded by Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation.

    Since 2004 Koivunen is affiliated as adjunct professor (docent) at Universities of Helsinki and Tampere.

    Currently Koivunen is the head of three research projects. Flows of power – media as site and agent of politics (FLOPO) is one of Media and society (Mediasoc) programme projects funded by Academy of Finland (2018–2022). Politicized Intimacies is part of Intimacy in Data-Driven Culture (IDA) project funded by The Strategic Research Council (2019–2022). The third project, Time of Culture Television: another history of Finnish television 1975–1985 is funded by Kone Foundation (2018–2022).

    Koivunen has written on Finnish cinema and television history and feminist film theory, contemporary documentaries, the new cultural imagination around Sweden Finns and mediated cultures of emotion.

  • Matti Kalliokoski

    Matti Kalliokoski (b. 1970) has been in the board of trustees since 2021, first as a deputy member and as a member since 2023. He is the editor-in-chief of Suomen Kuvalehti, Kanava and Parnasso magazines.

    Kalliokoski graduated from the Sanoma School of Journalism in 1990. He is a Master of Political Science from University of Helsinki (1998).

    As a journalist Kalliokoski has served e.g. as a interim editor-in-chief in the newspaper Keskipohjanmaa, editor-in-chief in the newspaper Ilkka and editorial page editor in Helsingin Sanomat.

    He has also worked in the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA), Nokia Telecommunications and the Office of the President of the Republic.

    Kalliokoski is a member of the supervisory board in the Finnish Cultural Foundation and a member of the board in the Keskipohjanmaa Foundation.

  • Virpi Tuunainen

    Virpi Tuunainen (b. 1967) has been in the board of trustees since 2022, first as a deputy member and as a member since 2023. She is the Associate Dean of research and international cooperation and Professor of Information Systems Science at Aalto University School of Business.

    Tuunainen received her PhD (econ.) degree from Helsinki School of Economics in 1999 and she has been a professor since 2000, first fixed-term and then permanent since 2008. In addition, she has been a visiting professor/researcher in different universities around the world (University of Hong Kong, University of Texas at Austin, Erasmus University Rotterdam, University of Auckland, Roskilde University, Copenhagen Business School and Chalmers University of Technology/University of Gothenburg).

    Additionally, in 2010-2015 Tuunainen served as the Director of Aalto University Service Factory, and in 2013-2016 as the Vice President of Publications of Association for Information Systems. She was on the Board of Directors of Kesko Corporation in 2012-2015, on the Union Board of the Finnish Union of University Professors in 2016-2019 and she has served on the Board of Trustees of the Media Industry Research Foundation of Finland since 2021.

    Her current research focuses platform economy, users’ trust in artificial intelligence (AI), the division of labor between humans and AI in organizations, and implications of AI in consumer experiences. She has published over 100 academic articles and she serves/has served on editorial boards of several international academic journals. She received the prestigious AIS Fellow award in 2016.

  • Teija Sutinen

    Teija Sutinen (b. 1961) was elected as a board member in spring 2023. She works in Helsingin Sanomat as a Brussels correspondent until the end of August 2023 and after returning to Finland continues covering domestic politics and economics.

    Sutinen started working in Helsingin Sanomat as a summer reporter in 1985. She was permanently employed in 1988 first as a reporter and later as a news editor at economics desk. In 2009 she moved to domestic politics desk following especially parliamentary affairs. She has worked also at the editorial pages of Helsingin Sanomat. Between the years 1995-1998 Sutinen worked as a reporter in the business magazine Talouselämä.

    Sutinen has graduated from the School of Translation Studies at Joensuu University and the School of Journalism Studies at Tampere University.

Other administration

The Working Committee

The members of the committee are Antero Mukka (chairman), Pirjo Hiidenmaa, Pekka Aula, Anu Koivunen, and Ulla Koski.

The Finance Committee

Nils Ittonen serves as the chairman of the Finance Committee. The other members are Antero Mukka, Pekka Aula, Teija Sutinen, and Ulla Koski.

The Scientific Committee

The members of the Scientific Committee are Professor Terhi Rantanen, London School of Economics, Professor Ike Picone, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Emeritus Professor Hannu Nieminen, University of Helsinki, Lecturer Kata Kyrölä, University College London, Professor Jussi Parikka, Aarhus University,  Associate Professor Tero Karppi, University of Toronto, and Assistant Professor Tanja Aitamurto, University of Illinois at Chicago.

Representing the Foundation on the Scientific Committee are Professor Pirjo Hiidenmaa (chairman), and President Ulla Koski.

History

History

The Helsingin Sanomat Foundation was formed when the Helsingin Sanomat Centennial Foundation merged with the Päivälehti Archive Foundation in December of 2005.

The Board of Directors of Sanoma Corporation and the Board of Directors of the picture agency Lehtikuva Oy founded the Päivälehti Archive Foundation in 1984. The following year, they founded the Helsingin Sanomat Centennial Foundation.

Between 1990 and 2005, the Helsingin Sanomat Centennial Foundation provided a total of 9,300,000 euros in donations and grants to some 589 recipients.

During the past few years grants were awarded for dissertation research and for post-doctoral research conducted abroad.

Memberships

Memberships

The Helsingin Sanomat Foundation is a member in the Association of Finnish Foundations, and the Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce.

Other information

Auditor

PricewaterhouseCoopers (Eetu Anttonen, CA).

Business ID

The business ID of the Helsingin Sanomat Foundation is 2066823-5.