Jake Tapper

Jake Tapper
Tapper in 2023
Born
Jacob Paul Tapper

(1969-03-12) March 12, 1969 (age 55)
New York City, New York, U.S.
EducationDartmouth College (BA)
OccupationJournalist
EmployerCNN
OrganizationWhite House Correspondents' Association
Spouse
Jennifer Marie Brown
(m. 2006)
Children2
AwardsMerriman Smith Memorial Award
Emmy Award
Websitejaketapper.com

Jacob Paul Tapper (born March 12, 1969) is an American journalist. He is the lead Washington anchor for CNN, hosts the weekday television news show The Lead with Jake Tapper, and co-hosts the Sunday morning public affairs program State of the Union.

Before joining CNN, Tapper worked for ABC News as Senior White House Correspondent, where he received three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards from the White House Correspondents' Association.[1][2][3] Tapper helped with the coverage of the inauguration of President Obama that earned an Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Coverage of a Current News Story. Tapper was part of a team that was awarded an Edward R. Murrow Award for Video: Breaking News for "Target bin Laden: The Death of Public Enemy #1". His book The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor debuted at number 10 in November 2012 on The New York Times Best Seller list for hardback non-fiction. Tapper's book and his reporting on the veterans and troops were cited when the Congressional Medal of Honor Society awarded him the "Tex" McCrary Award for Excellence in Journalism.[4]

The Republican primary debate Tapper moderated in September 2015 drew more than 23 million viewers, making it the most-watched program in the history of CNN and the second-most watched primary debate ever.[5] He also moderated the Republican presidential debate in Miami on March 10, 2016, which drew almost 12 million viewers,[6] and according to Variety, "garnered acclaim for its substance".[7]

  1. ^ "White House Correspondents' Association 2010 Journalism Awards". White House Correspondents' Association. April 13, 2010. Archived from the original on May 3, 2010. Retrieved May 1, 2011.
  2. ^ "White House Correspondents' Association Announces Recipients of the 2011 Awards". White House Correspondents' Association. Archived from the original on May 10, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2012.
  3. ^ "2012 WHCA Journalism Awards". White House Correspondents' Association. Archived from the original on June 29, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  4. ^ "Blog Detail | Medal of Honor Convention". www.mohconvention.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  5. ^ Stelter, Brian (September 17, 2015). "23 million watched GOP debate, a record for CNN". CNNMoney. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  6. ^ Stelter, Brian (March 11, 2016). "A Republican debate again outdraws Democrats". Money.cnn.com. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
  7. ^ Kissell, Rick (March 11, 2016). "Ratings: Viewership Falls Off for Civilized GOP Debate on CNN". Variety. Los Angeles, California: Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2017.