Juliet Eilperin’s love of ice cream led her to a career in journalism. During her first week at Princeton University, the school newspaper, the Princetonian, gave away free ice cream to recruit student reporters. Eilperin signed up immediately.
Today, Eilperin is a congressional correspondent at the Washington Post, for which she covers the House of Representatives. At 30 years old, Eilperin is at the pinnacle of political journalism. But getting there wasn’t always easy. Eilperin says she has had her fair share of rejection letters to show for her career’s journey.
Eilperin was always interested in politics, as she grew up in Washington, DC. She graduated from Princeton, in 1992, where she studied politics and Latin American studies. Eilperin developed her love for journalism at Princeton. “I really loved my first year,” she says. “I learned how the Administration was making decisions on policy; I was learning about what was going on on campus.”
Eilperin first thought she would become a lawyer. But she enjoyed the investigative aspect of journalism so much that she chose the latter as her career. She became one of two managing editors of The Princetonian. During her college summers, Eilperin did a series of internships. She worked for El Latino, a Spanish-language newspaper in Washington, DC. After her junior year of college, she worked for the New York Times Bureau Chief in Mexico City, Mexico. Upon graduation, Eilperin won a Luce Scholarship, which allows American students to learn about Asia. So she flew to South Korea to write for a business magazine in Seoul.
When she returned to the United States, Eilperin did more internships. Her most infamous was at States News Service, which provides stories to newspapers that do not have correspondents in Washington, DC. This was also a boot camp of sorts for young, ambitious journalists hoping to break into political journalism.
At States News Service, Eilperin earned $15,000 per year. “The salary hadn’t changed in five to seven years,” she says. Fortunately, she was able to live at home to save cash.
“Obviously, it’s not something you do to make money,” she says.
After her experience at States News Service, Eilperin’s career really took off. She joined Roll Call in December, 1994, right after the Republicans took over the majority in Congress. Roll Call is a twice-weekly newspaper dedicated to covering Congress. Many of its reporters eventually go onto bigger newspapers and magazines.
In March 1998, after four years at Roll Call, Eilperin joined the Washington Post to cover the House of Representatives.
“I love my job because it’s constantly changing,” Eilperin says. “I’m never bored because I am always switching subject matter.” At the same time, she has an impact on events when she reports about a bill or special-interest provision in legislation. Eilperin says that because political stakes are so high, Congress members will often call her if they feel a story hurts their reputation. Because she spends so much time with the politicians she covers, Eilperin says they can feel betrayed because they come to believe that she’s on their side. But journalists have to be objective and can’t take sides. “It’s not my job to get them re-elected,” Eilperin says. “I have a job to do.”
Regardless, Eilperin thinks the criticism is valuable. “I love the exposure to different views. So many people are so passionate about their agenda and what they believe in,” she says. “I love the campaign trail, stalking members of Congress and learning about issues.”
Even though there is no single, correct route to becoming a reporter, Eilperin believes that the best way to
get reporting experience is to report.
“Get out and get as many summer jobs as you can on a local or weekly paper,” she says. “Just start straight out of school and do as much on-hand reporting as you can do.”
“Advancement,” she says, “is possible for those with a pile of good writing clips. Journalism is a meritocracy,” Eilperin says. “People who are good get recognized.”
Eilperin believes there is merit to going to journalism school, but some people would rather learn on the job. The key is to find the best stories you can and work with an editor who can improve your skills as a writer.
“It can be very tough at first,” Eilperin says. “Don’t go into it if you don’t love it. You must feel it’s a calling.”
At 30 years old, it would seem that there is nowhere else to go from the top of the journalism pack. But in 10 years, Eilperin would like to be a foreign correspondent in Latin America or Asia. She says she wants to explain to Americans why events in far away places
are important.
Write Juliet Eilperin for the scoop about life as a newspaper reporter at The Washington Post; National Desk; 1150 15th Street, N.W.; Washington, DC; 20071.
