Jake Tapper facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jake Tapper
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Tapper in 2025
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| Born |
Jacob Paul Tapper
March 12, 1969 New York City, U.S.
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| Education | Dartmouth College (BA) |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Employer | CNN |
| Organization | White House Correspondents' Association |
| Spouse(s) |
Jennifer Marie Brown
(m. 2006) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Merriman Smith Memorial Award Emmy Award |
Jacob Paul Tapper (born March 12, 1969) is an American journalist. He is a main anchor for CNN in Washington, D.C. He hosts the weekday news show The Lead with Jake Tapper. He also co-hosts the Sunday morning political program State of the Union.
Jake Tapper has won many awards for his journalism, including Emmy Awards in 2023 and 2024. He is known for asking tough questions to politicians. In 2015, a debate he led with Donald Trump had over 23 million viewers. This was the most-watched program ever on CNN. He also helped lead a debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump in 2024. This debate was watched by more than 51 million people.
Before joining CNN, Tapper worked for ABC News. There, he was a senior White House correspondent. He won three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards for his reporting. He was also part of a team that won an Emmy Award for covering President Obama's inauguration.
Tapper has written several books. One of his books, The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor, was a best-seller. This book and his work on veterans earned him the "Tex" McCrary Award for Excellence in Journalism.
Contents
Early Life and School
Jake Tapper was born in New York City. He grew up in Queen Village, Philadelphia. His mother, Helen Anne, was a psychiatric nurse. His father, Theodore Samuel "Ted" Tapper, was a pediatrician. Both of his parents are Jewish.
When he was young, Tapper went to The Philadelphia School. This was a school that focused on new ways of learning. In eighth grade, he created a comic strip for a local newspaper. He later attended Akiba Hebrew Academy, a Jewish day school.
Tapper graduated from Dartmouth College in 1991. He studied History and Visual Studies. He earned high honors, including Phi Beta Kappa. He also briefly attended the USC School of Cinematic Arts.
Journalism Career
Jake Tapper started his career in 1992. He worked as a press secretary for a political campaign. He also worked for public relations firms. In 1997, he worked for a group that aimed to prevent gun violence.
Tapper began his full-time journalism career in 1998. For two years, he was a senior writer for the Washington City Paper. He won an award from the Society of Professional Journalists for his work there.
From 1999 to 2002, Tapper was a Washington correspondent for Salon. He reported on important topics like the Enron scandal. He also questioned the Bush administration's claims about Iraq.
In 2001, Tapper hosted a news talk show on CNN called Take Five. He also wrote for many well-known magazines and newspapers. These included The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine. He was also a regular guest on National Public Radio's All Things Considered.
Working at ABC News
ABC News hired Tapper in 2003. While there, he covered many big stories. He reported from Baghdad, New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, and Afghanistan. From March to July 2010, Tapper was the temporary anchor for ABC's This Week.
Tapper became the Senior White House Correspondent in 2008. This was the day after the presidential election. He won the Merriman Smith Memorial Award three times for his reporting on the president. He was also a key part of the ABC News team that won an Emmy Award for covering President Obama's inauguration.
Tapper often filled in as host for ABC shows like Good Morning America and Nightline. He also interviewed President Obama several times. As the lead reporter for the 2008 presidential election, he was praised for his fair reporting. He interviewed many candidates from both major parties.
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Joining CNN
On December 20, 2012, it was announced that Jake Tapper would join CNN. He started in January 2013. He began hosting his own weekday show, The Lead with Jake Tapper.
The Lead with Jake Tapper has won many awards. In 2013, it won three National Headliner Awards for its reporting. This included coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing. In 2014, the show was honored for reports on academic fraud at a university. The show has also been nominated for many Emmy Awards.
In 2015, Tapper's reporting helped change a Pentagon rule. This rule had negatively affected caregivers for wounded service members. After his questions, the Pentagon brought back the old policy. In 2024, his reporting also led to a change in policy for Gold Star families. This change allowed families to pay for flowers to be placed on graves of loved ones in military cemeteries abroad.
In June 2015, Tapper became the host of CNN's Sunday political show, State of the Union with Jake Tapper. He is known for challenging politicians from all sides. He has asked tough questions to many important figures.
On September 16, 2015, Tapper led two Republican primary debates. The main debate was watched by over 23 million people. This made it the most-watched program in CNN's history. He also led another Republican debate in Miami in 2016.
In 2017, he received the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism. He also received the John F. Hogan Distinguished Service Award.
In 2018, Tapper was part of a CNN team that won the Merriman Smith Award. This was for their reporting on the White House.
After a presidential debate in 2020, Tapper described it as a "hot mess." In January 2021, CNN announced that Tapper's role would grow. He became the network's main anchor for all big Washington events. Dana Bash also joined him as a co-host on State of the Union.
In 2024, Tapper led a Republican primary debate with Dana Bash. He also co-led the 2024 presidential election debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
Other Programs and Media
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Tapper has written for many publications, including GQ and The New York Times. In 2001, he hosted Take Five on CNN. In 2002 and 2003, he hosted entertainment and independent film shows. He has also been a guest on popular talk shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Colbert Report.
In 2022, Tapper wrote a story for The Atlantic magazine. It was about C.J. Rice, a former patient of his father's. Rice was in prison for a crime his father believed he could not have committed. Tapper's story showed how Rice did not have proper legal help. In 2023, Rice's conviction was overturned. In March 2024, Rice was cleared of all charges. Tapper was the first to report this news.
Tapper made a small appearance in a Halloween episode of The Rookie in 2022. His son, Jack, also appeared with him. Tapper and his son watched the show together during the COVID-19 pandemic. He wanted to show his thanks for the program.
Tapper also appears as a news correspondent in the 2025 movie Superman.
Books and Comics
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In 2018, Jake Tapper published his first novel, The Hellfire Club. It is a political thriller about a new Congressman finding corruption in Washington in the 1950s. The book became a New York Times Best Seller. Critics praised it as insightful and well-written. The sequel, The Devil May Dance, was released in 2021. The third book in the series, All the Demons Are Here, came out in 2023.
Tapper also wrote The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor. This book is about U.S. troops in Afghanistan. It was a best-seller and received strong reviews. A movie based on The Outpost was released in 2020.
His other books include Down and Dirty: The Plot to Steal the Presidency, about the 2000 election. He also wrote Body Slam: The Jesse Ventura Story.
Tapper's comic strip Capitol Hell appeared in Roll Call from 1994 to 2003. He has also drawn cartoons for other publications. In 2014, he wrote the introduction for The Complete Peanuts 1993 to 1994. In 2016, he was a guest illustrator for the Dilbert cartoon. The original drawings were sold to raise money for a charity that builds homes for veterans.
In 2025, Tapper co-authored a book called Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.
Awards and Recognitions
As the Senior White House Correspondent for ABC News, Jake Tapper won three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards. These awards are for broadcast journalism. As a CNN anchor, he won his fourth Merriman Smith Award in 2018.
In 2017, Tapper won several awards. These included the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Political Journalism. Judges praised his dedication to truth and his interviewing style. He also won the RTDNA's John F. Hogan Distinguished Service Award. This award recognizes contributions to journalism and freedom of the press.
In 2018, Tapper won a Vetty award for his coverage of veterans' issues.
Since 2010, Tapper has been recognized as one of the most influential TV journalists in America by Mediaite. He is known for holding both Republicans and Democrats accountable. In 2022, Mediaite called him "the top dog who could represent the CNN brand."
In 2016, The Lead won two National Headliner Awards. These were for Best Newscast and Best Coverage of a Major News Event. This included the show's coverage of the November 2015 Paris attacks.
The Los Angeles Press Club gave Tapper its 2017 President's Award. They said he was willing to challenge politicians from both sides. They praised his effective interview style.
Tapper also has two honorary degrees from UMass Amherst and Dartmouth.
He won Emmy Awards in 2023 for covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine and for a special on January 6. He won more Emmy Awards in 2024 for hosting a town hall on a train disaster and for covering the Israel-Hamas War.
Personal Life
Jake Tapper married Jennifer Marie Brown in 2006. They live in Washington, D.C., with their two children.
See also
In Spanish: Jake Tapper para niños
