Washington Post hires economics reporter

Jim Tankersley, the economics correspondent for National Journal, has been hired to cover the economy for the Washington Post.

The announcement sent out to the Post staff on Friday states:

The Financial staff is thrilled to announce that economics reporter Jim Tankersley will be joining us from The National Journal.

Jim is one of the finest writers about the economy and economic policy anywhere. He is a creative and insightful thinker who can make the biggest subjects seem interesting and accessible, and we’re excited about having him join our talented economic policy team.

For the past two years at National Journal, he’s written extensively online and in print about the breakdown in American job creation, the decline in economic mobility and the failure of policy makers to adapt to an increasingly complex set of global economic challenges. He co-created and co-edited “Restoration Calls,” National Journal’s 2012 election issues series, which explained America’s largest challenges through stories about the people struggling with them.

Jim joined National Journal from the Tribune Washington Bureau, where he covered energy, the environment and politics, with a heavy focus on economic issues during the 2008 presidential campaign, for newspapers including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. He previously worked at the Toledo Blade, the Rocky Mountain News and The Oregonian.

Jim and a colleague at The Blade won the 2007 Livingston Award for Young Journalists for their “Business as Usual” series of stories revealing the true roots of Ohio’s economic decline. He was also part of the “Coingate” team at the Toledo Blade that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

An Oregon native and 2000 graduate of Stanford University, Jim lives in Alexandria with his wife, Marci Prenger, and his son Max, who is 6. Please welcome Jim when he arrives at the end of the month.