Former Wall Street Journal reporter Michael Casey has been appointed senior advisor of MIT Media Lab’s Digital Currency Initiative to help raise bitcoin awareness.

The journalist, known for his work with Paul Vigna on The Age of Cryptocurrency and their regular WSJ column BitBeat – which covered developments in the crypto space – will take up his post at the beginning of September.

After 23 years in journalism, Casey’s change of career is largely due to the transformative potential of digital currencies, he said in a statement.

“Leaving the Wall Street Journal after 18 years is not a decision I took lightly. What it does reflect is my belief that digital currency is on the cusp of becoming a major transformative force in society.”

In his role as senior advisor, Casey will work with both students and professors on social impact projects, focusing on raising the profile of digital currencies.

MIT Media Lab’s Digital Currency Initiative was launched in April and is headed by Brian Forde, a former White House senior advisor.

MIT image via Shutterstock.