Roll Call facts for kids
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| Type | Periodical newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Newspaper |
| Owner(s) | FiscalNote |
| Founder(s) | Sid Yudain |
| Founded | June 16, 1955 |
| Political alignment | Nonpartisan |
| Language | American English |
| Headquarters | 1625 Eye Street NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20006 |
| Country | United States |
| Circulation | 30,786 (June 2017) |
| OCLC number | 44314138 |
Roll Call is a special newspaper and website published in Washington, D.C., United States. It comes out when the United States Congress is working. Roll Call shares news about laws and politics happening on Capitol Hill. It also covers important congressional elections across the country.
Roll Call is the main publication of CQ Roll Call. This group also runs CQ, which used to be called Congressional Quarterly. CQ provides daily and weekly news about Congress and politics to its subscribers. It also publishes a weekly magazine. Some regular writers for Roll Call include Walter Shapiro, Mary C. Curtis, Patricia Murphy, and Stu Rothenberger.
Contents
How Roll Call Started
Roll Call was created in 1955 by a man named Sid Yudain. He used to be a press secretary for Congressman Al Morano. A press secretary helps a politician talk to the news media.
The very first issue of the newspaper came out on June 16, 1955. They printed 10,000 copies. Richard Nixon, who was the Vice President of the United States at the time, even wrote a letter to Sid Yudain. He congratulated Yudain on his new newspaper. Nixon's letter was printed on the front page of that first issue!
In 1986, Sid Yudain sold Roll Call to Arthur Levitt. Arthur Levitt was the chairman of the American Stock Exchange when he bought the newspaper. Even after selling it, Sid Yudain kept working at Roll Call as a writer.
Later, in 1993, a company called The Economist Group bought Roll Call. In 2009, Roll Call joined with CQ after The Economist Group bought CQ too. Then, in July 2018, a deal was announced for CQ Roll Call to be bought by FiscalNote.
Cool Features and Events
"Heard on the Hill" Column
In January 1988, Roll Call started a special column called "Heard on the Hill." This column shares interesting stories about life and work in and around Capitol Hill. It covers fun and sometimes surprising things that happen there.
From 2014 to 2018, Alex Gangitano wrote "Heard on the Hill." Later, on April 30, 2019, Roll Call announced that Clyde McGrady and Kathryn Lyons would be the new writers for this popular column.
The Congressional Baseball Game
Since 1962, Roll Call has helped organize the yearly Congressional Baseball Game for Charity. This is a baseball game played by members of Congress to raise money for good causes.
In 1965, the first Roll Call Trophy was given out. The Republican team won it because they were the first to win three games since Roll Call started sponsoring the event. A new trophy is awarded to the next team that wins three games. Roll Call also helps with the Congressional Baseball Hall of Fame. This hall of fame honors people who have played in the game.
People Who Work at Roll Call
Here are some of the people who work at Roll Call:
- Kathryn Lyons, Heard on the Hill reporter
- Camila Dechalus, Immigration Reporter
- Rebecca Adams, Senior Editor
- Megan Scully, Senior Editor
- Ed Timms, Investigations Editor
- Herb Jackson, Politics Editor
- Jason Dick, Deputy Editor
- Lindsey Gilbert, Deputy Editor
- Lindsey McPherson, Senior Writer
- Niels Lesniewski, Senior Writer
- John M. Donnelly, Senior Writer
- Jennifer Shutt, Budget and Appropriations Reporter
- Bridget Bowman, Politics Reporter
- Simone Pathé, Politics Reporter
- Stephanie Akin, Politics Reporter
- Kate Ackley, Lobbying Reporter
Famous Former Roll Call Staff
Many people who worked at Roll Call have gone on to do other important things in journalism and media. Here are a few of them:
- Mary Ann Akers, writer for Politico
- Christina Bellantoni, editor for Los Angeles Times
- Chris Cillizza, politics reporter for CNN
- Tim Curran, editor for The Washington Post
- Steven T. Dennis, reporter for Bloomberg
- Matt Fuller, editor for The Daily Beast
- Emily Heil, writer for The Washington Post
- Ed Henry, correspondent for Fox News Channel
- Paul Kane, correspondent for The Washington Post
- Steve Kornacki, political correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC
- John McArdle, producer and co-host for C-SPAN's Washington Journal
- Norah O'Donnell, co-anchor for CBS This Morning
- Mark Preston, executive editor for CNN Politics
- Jake Tapper, anchor for CNN's The Lead with Jake Tapper
- Katherine Tully-McManus, reporter for Politico
- Nina Totenberg, correspondent for National Public Radio
- Jim VandeHei, co-founder of Axios and Politico
- Rachel Van Dongen, editor for The Washington Post
Political Theater Podcast
Roll Call also has a podcast called "Political Theater Podcast." It is hosted by Jason Dick.
See also
- List of newspapers in Washington, D.C.
