Kristen Welker Named 2023 WABJ Journalist of the Year
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, October 16, 2023
PRESS CONTACT: Kenrick Thomas – info@wabjdc.org
Washington, D.C. — Today, the Washington Association of Black Journalists announced that Kristen Welker, the newly minted moderator of NBC News’ flagship Sunday morning public affairs show “Meet the Press,” is the 2023 recipient of the WABJ Journalist of the Year Award. This award recognizes a Washington, D.C. area Black journalist for their groundbreaking accomplishments and distinguished body of work produced over the past year with extraordinary depth and significance.
Welker, who previously served as NBC News’ chief White House correspondent and co-anchor of “Saturday Today,” will be honored at the WABJ Special Honors & Scholarship Gala on Saturday, Dec. 2 at Armour J. Blackburn University Center on the campus of Howard University. Tickets for the gala can be purchased here.
The Emmy-winning journalist is the first Black woman—and the second woman after the show’s co-creator, Martha Rountree—to sit full-time in the moderator seat of the Sunday morning news show. Her ascension to the role makes her the 13th moderator of “Meet the Press.” Her exemplary political reporting has appeared across all NBC News and MSNBC platforms, including NBCNews.com, “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt,” and “TODAY.”
“WABJ is delighted to recognize and celebrate Kristen Welker’s stellar career accomplishments and contributions to our industry with this worthy award,” said WABJ President Khorri Atkinson. “Her grit and poise when reporting some of the country’s biggest stories and holding those in authority accountable is commendable and it empowers other journalists to do the same.”
The awards gala is a fundraiser to support WABJ scholarships, year-round professional development programming, and the organization’s long-running Urban Journalism Workshop for D.C. area high school students, which is now in its 37th year.
WABJ congratulates Welker on this well-deserved honor.
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Founded in 1975, the Washington Association of Black Journalists is an organization of Black journalists, educators, public relations professionals and student journalists in the Washington, D.C., metro area. WABJ provides members with ongoing professional development opportunities and advocates for newsroom diversity, equity and inclusion.
