WSJ names Cummings its DC deputy bureau chief

Wall Street Journal Washington bureau chief Paul Beckett sent out the following announcement:

All:

Over the past two years, we have been ramping up in the Washington bureau to reflect the huge importance of the story and to ensure that we are dominating topics that are vital for the Journal’s readers and core to the Journal’s central mission.

That has meant expanding almost all of our reporting teams; adding data, visual and video capabilities; starting a new team centered around the intersection of business and Washington; and, of course — thanks to all of you — winning the stories that matter most with peerless reporting.

A key focus for us now, as we look to keep expanding and to prepare for what’s ahead, including the 2020 presidential election, is to effectively manage growth in Washington to make sure we remain nimble and expert in delivering our journalism to readers everywhere they are today, and where they will be tomorrow.

To help us steer that course, I am delighted to announce a new role for Jeanne Cummings as Deputy Bureau Chief for bureau-wide operations, special projects and new initiatives. In this new position, Jeanne will work closely with me to ensure that our coverage area is strong both operationally and journalistically, building on her deep experience at the Journal.

I asked Jeanne to take this next step in her Dow Jones career so that she can exercise her management skills across the entire bureau. This will include: taking on special projects and other initiatives to ensure that the presentation of our journalism is cutting edge; helping in staff evaluations, performance and career management; and representing us more widely through WSJ and other events. And as everyone who knows Jeanne already knows, she will be a valuable counselor for any manner of advice.

I know that this is a role Jeanne will take on with great drive and expertise after her sterling and tireless work leading the Politics team these past three years during what anyone would consider turbulent times. She will move into the new position after a transition period during which we will name a new Politics Editor to lead our Politics team as we prepare for coverage of the 2020 race.

Jeanne was a WSJ reporter covering politics and the White House from 1997 to 2007. She returned to the Journal in 2015. She won the 2000 Aldo Beckman Memorial Award, the highest honor for daily White House correspondents, for her coverage of the Clinton administration. Jeanne is a D.C.-area native and graduate of the University of Maryland. She is a regular guest on Fox News and MSNBC.

Please join me in congratulating Jeanne on her new role, and stay tuned for more on exciting things to come.