NYTimes tech reporter Miller joining Upshot

David Leonhardt, who is operating the pending New York Times‘ web-only operation The Upshot, sent out the following staff announcement:

In November 2010, when Google seemed to be flying high, Claire Cain Miller wrote a front-page story in The Times about the company’s behind-the-scenes struggle to retain talent. She described its engineers as “chafing under the growing bureaucracy.” Google was not happy about the story. A company spokeswoman called Claire’s editor and demanded that she be taken off the beat.

Claire stayed on the beat, of course. And less than two months later, Google announced it was replacing its chief executive in an attempt to reinvigorate the company.

In almost six years on the tech beat at The Times, Claire has proven herself to be smart, tough and versatile. She has written a delightful profile of a Twitter founder and a much-discussed piece about its lack of female board members. She knows everyone who matters in Silicon Valley, including those who are normally hard to reach. She has helped make The Times a leader in technology coverage while also finding time to write about education and other subjects.

Now Claire is joining The Upshot, our new venture dedicated to demystifying politics, policy and other subjects — including the defining role that technology plays in shaping our economy, our culture and our daily lives. Beyond technology, Claire will also write regularly about the fascinating and crucial issues surrounding gender, work and family. Given my own interest in these issues — and longtime admiration of Claire’s work — I feel tremendously lucky that she’s on our team.

A native of Portland, Ore., Claire came to The Times from Forbes after stints working at the Council of Foreign Relations and doing research for Steven Brill. For The Upshot, she will be based in San Francisco, where she will continue to share with visiting staffers her encyclopedic knowledge not only of the tech industry but also of the best places to eat.