Kenneth R. Weinstein

Kenneth R. Weinstein is Japan Chair at Hudson Institute. He is also Founding Chair and CEO of the Indo-Pacific Forum (IPF), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting connectivity, resilience, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, which he co-founded in 2022 with the late Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe.

Prior to founding the IPF, Dr. Weinstein served for fifteen years as CEO of Hudson Institute. Weinstein led Hudson to transformative growth, with the Institute making signature policy contributions towards global security.

Weinstein has served by presidential appointment on federal commissions under four different U.S. presidents, including as Chair of the US Agency for Global Media, and its affiliated organizations, most notably Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Weinstein speaks fluent French and German and has done live television interviews in French and German. He holds a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University, a post-graduate degree (D.E.A) in Soviet Studies from Sciences Po, and a B.A. in General Studies in the Humanities from the University of Chicago.

In March 2020, he was nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Japan, receiving unanimous bipartisan support from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in September 2020 before his nomination expired at the end of the 116th Congress.

In September 2025, Weinstein was named Ombudsman for CBS News.