Jen Judson elected 115th president of National Press Club

Jen Judson elected 115th president of National Press Club

Jen Judson, the land warfare reporter for Defense News, was elected the 115th president of the National Press Club. In her acceptance remarks Friday, Dec. 10, just after polling closed and vote tallying was completed, she urged members to “put your energy into the Club” as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions loosen.

“We’ll hopefully see more of each other in the coming year,” she told the crowded Reliable Source gathering after the election results were announced. She praised the outgoing president, Lisa Nicole Matthews, for helping the Club smartly navigate the pandemic’s challenges that doomed so many other businesses. Judson has been Club vice president this year.

She was unopposed on the slate. In unopposed races for the remaining Club officer positions, elected were: Eileen Drage O’Reilly, vice president; Emily Wilkins, treasurer; Mike Balsamo, secretary; and Gillian Rich, membership secretary.

Herb Jackson, Tara Copp, Alisa Parenti and Glenn Marcus were elected to three-year terms on the Board of Governors, all Journalist seats. They each receive more votes than the remaining two candidates on the ballot for those seats, Mushfiqul Fazal and Dan McCue.

Mark Schoeff Jr. and Poonam Sharma were elected to Journalist board seats for one-year terms, edging out the third candidate for one of the two seats, Claude Porsella.

The COVID-19 pandemic and political polarization in recent years have created distrust of the media, Judson said. She said her top goals for her year at the helm of the Club include emphasizing education about the importance of a free press and protecting journalists around the world.

She pledged to continue the club’s advocacy for the release of journalist Austin Tice, who was detained while reporting in Syria nearly 10 years ago. She met recently with his mother, Debra, at the Club and said she would work to ensure “2022 will be the year he comes home.”

Judson has been covering defense news in Washington since 2012. After working at Politico and Inside Defense, she has been working at Defense News for more than six years, reporting on the complicated bureaucracy of the Pentagon and Capitol Hill for policy-makers and readers in the defense industry.

Born and raised in Denver, Colorado, Judson earned a master of science degree in print journalism from Boston University and a bachelor of arts degree from Kenyon College in Ohio.

She now lives in Arlington, Virginia, with her husband Jim and their two toddler sons, Frankie and Teddy.

In her campaign statement ahead of the election, Judson said she has found the Club to be “a haven of both inspiration and camaraderie in good times and bad, and my goal is to ensure this continues for all members.”

She recounted her experience serving in leadership roles on the Young Members Committee and the Scholarship Committee. She was elected vice president of the Club in December 2020.

The pandemic has "deeply affected" the Club, which had to make tough decisions to curtail services and in-person events. Many journalists are suffering from burnout and financial stressors, she said.

In the year ahead, she sees the Club as "a place to re-energize" and reconnect with others. Source: NPC Wire