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Weijia Jiang

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Weijia Jiang
Jiang in 2018
Born (1983-06-06) June 6, 1983 (age 43)
Xiamen, Fujian, China
Education
Occupations
  • News reporter
  • television journalist
Years active2006–present
Notable credits
  • WCBS-TV New York correspondent (2012–2015)
  • CBS News White House Correspondent (2018–present)
TitleWhite House Correspondent
Spouse
Travis Luther Lowe
​
(m. 2018)​
Children2
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese江惟嘉
Simplified Chinese江惟嘉
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinJiāng Wéijiā
Wade–GilesJiang1 Wei2jia1
Southern Min
Hokkien POJKiung Ói-ka

Weijia Jiang (Chinese: 江惟嘉; pinyin: Jiāng Wéijiā; born June 6, 1983) is an American television journalist and reporter.[1] She is based in Washington, D.C., and has served since 2018 as the Senior White House Correspondent for CBS News.[2] Jiang has also served since 2026 as the president of the White House Correspondents' Association.

In 2020, Jiang's question to President Donald Trump about the COVID-19 testing program in the United States[3] during a White House press briefing[4] received global attention and coverage.[5][6]

Early life

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Born in Xiamen, Fujian, China, to Liya Wei and Huade "John" Jiang, Jiang was two when the family immigrated to the United States.[7] She was raised in Buckhannon, West Virginia, where her parents owned and operated a Chinese restaurant.[8] At age 13, Jiang became interested in journalism after encouragement from her eighth-grade teacher, Dianne Williams. Together, they prepared a homemade TV show to submit to a competition run by Channel One, leading to an opportunity for Jiang to intern as a student anchor and reporter in Los Angeles for two weeks. During high school, Jiang worked on the high school video news staff under Julia Conley.[9]

In 2005, Jiang graduated from the College of William & Mary with a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a minor in chemistry. She worked on the student-run television station WMTV and credits the university for developing her curiosity.[10] In 2006, Jiang graduated from Syracuse University with master's degree in broadcast journalism.[8][11] In 2012, she was recognized for her contributions in communications as an inductee of Newhouse School of Public Communication's Professional Gallery.[12][13]

Career

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From 2006 to 2008, Jiang was a reporter for WBOC-TV in Salisbury, Maryland. From 2008 to 2012, she worked at WJZ-TV, Baltimore. From 2012 to 2015, Jiang worked as a general assignment reporter and fill-in anchor at WCBS-TV in New York City, where she covered the Boston Marathon bombings,[14] the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings,[15] and Hurricane Sandy.[16]

In 2013, WBZ-TV, Boston, won a regional Emmy award at the 34th News & Documentary Emmy Awards for the spot news coverage of the Newtown Tragedy[17] which Jiang was involved in reporting.[18] In 2014, Jiang was the Gala Dinner MC for the Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business Gala Dinner, which featured letters of support from Barack Obama, Andrew Cuomo, and Bill de Blasio.[19]

In 2015, Jiang moved to Washington, D.C., to become a correspondent for Newspath, the 24-hour news gathering service for CBS News. There, she has covered major political stories such as the 2016 United States presidential elections,[20] Barbara Bush's funeral,[21][22] and the congressional baseball shooting,[23] also extensively reporting on both the Obama and Trump administrations. In 2018, after covering President Donald Trump's G-7 Summit[24] and the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy,[25] Jiang became CBS News's White House correspondent.[26] She has traveled with Trump on many occasions, including on Air Force One, and has covered stories including the Helsinki summit between Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin,[27][28] the Mueller Probe, the 2020 United States presidential election,[29] and Trump's first and second impeachments.[2]

Jiang is a member of the Asian American Journalists Association.[30] In 2023, she was elected to an at-large board seat of the White House Correspondents' Association. She has served as the organization's president since 2026.[31] She continued to cover the White House as a senior White House correspondent for CBS News during the Biden administration.[32] She sat next to Trump during the 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, and was praised by him for her hosting of the dinner.[33]

Confrontations with President Trump

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As a White House Correspondent during the first Trump administration, Jiang had several high-profile clashes with Trump. He once ended a press conference when she pushed back on his refusal to answer a question.[34][35][36]

During a press conference on May 11, 2020, CBS News White House Correspondent Weijia Jiang asked in reference to Coronavirus testing, "Why is this a global competition to you if every day Americans are still losing their lives?", Trump replied "They're losing their lives everywhere in the world. And maybe that's a question you should ask China. Don't ask me, ask China that question, OK?"[37][34]

Memoir

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Jiang is writing a memoir, Other, set to be published by One Signal Publishers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.[38][39]

Awards

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Personal life

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On March 17, 2018, Jiang married Travis Luther Lowe, an executive at Yelp and a donor to Democratic Party candidates and causes,[43] in Palm Springs, California. Civil rights activist Jim Obergefell led the ceremony, which also featured a Chinese tea ceremony. Jiang and Lowe met in college, where they co-hosted a weekly campus television show.[8] In January 2019, she gave birth to their daughter.[44]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "Asian American journalists on what it's like reporting on the pain in their community". CBS News. March 26, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Weijia Jiang". CBS News. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  3. ↑ "U.S. has world's biggest COVID-19 testing programme, says Donald Trump". The Hindu. PTI. July 14, 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Trump gets in spat with Asian American reporter". BBC News. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Trump abruptly ends press conference after spat with reporters". The Hindu. AP. May 12, 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  6. ↑ Sandford, Alasdair (May 12, 2020). "'Don't ask me, ask China': Trump clashes with reporter on US tests". euronews. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Weijia Jiang". Washington Week. April 30, 2020. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 "Weijia Jiang, Luther Lowe". The New York Times. March 1, 2018. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  9. ↑ "CBS News reporter to serve as parade marshal". The Record Delta. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Covering COVID-19: W&M alumni reporting from front lines of pandemic". William & Mary. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Conversation with White House correspondent Weijia Jiang G'06". cusecommunity.syr.edu. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  12. ↑ "40 Newhouse alumni inducted into the school's Professional Gallery Nov. 10". Newhouse School | Syracuse University. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Newhouse School Professional Gallery induction ceremony will be held Nov. 10". SU News. October 23, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Surviving Boston Bombing Suspect Hospitalized As Questions Persist". April 20, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Visitors Continue Streaming In To Memorial In Front Of Sandy Hook Elementary School". December 18, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Rapid Repairs Work Completed On More Than 10K NYC Storm-Damaged Homes". January 21, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  17. ↑ "WBZ-TV Wins Emmy Award For Outstanding Regional Spot News". October 1, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Bells Toll In Newtown 26 Times For Victims Of Sandy Hook Shooting". December 21, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  19. ↑ "Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business 2014 Gala Dinner" (PDF). June 19, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 14, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Inside 4 battleground states that could determine the 2016 election". CBS News. October 10, 2016. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  21. ↑ "Barbara Bush Eulogized As 'First Lady Of The Greatest Generation'". Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  22. ↑ Boedeker, Hal (April 21, 2018). "Barbara Bush: TV carries her funeral". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  23. ↑ "Scalise's Condition Improves, But More Surgery May Be Needed". Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  24. ↑ "Group photo masks underlying tension at G-7 summit". CBS News. June 8, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  25. ↑ "What happens now to 2,000 kids already separated from families? It's unclear". CBS News. June 21, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  26. ↑ de Moraes, Lisa (July 9, 2018). "CBS News Ups Weijia Jiang To White House Correspondent". Deadline. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  27. ↑ "Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki: 'Journalist' Sam Husseini kicked out of press conference for raising protest sign". Firstpost. July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  28. ↑ "Reporter kicked out of Trump-Putin press conference in Helsinki". CBS News. July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  29. ↑ "Weijia Jiang's schedule for AAJA19". aaja19.sched.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  30. ↑ "AAJA Stands with Journalists Pressing for Accountability in Coronavirus Response, Asian American Journalists Association". Asian American Journalists Association. May 13, 2020. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  31. ↑ Tamanaha, Akemi (July 1, 2023). "Weijia Jiang elected White House correspondents president". AsAmNews. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
  32. ↑ Johnson, Ted (January 15, 2021). "CBS News Sets D.C. Lineup: Nancy Cordes Tapped As Chief White House Correspondent; Ed O'Keefe And Weijia Jiang Also On POTUS Beat". Deadline. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
  33. ↑ Nierenberg, Amelia (April 26, 2026). "Trump Praises WHCA President Weijia Jiang After Shooting at Dinner". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
  34. 1 2 Gabbatt, Adam; Smith, David (May 12, 2020). "Trump accused of racism after clash with Asian American reporter". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  35. ↑ Scott, Dylan (March 1, 2020). "Trump's new fixation on using a racist name for the coronavirus is dangerous". Vox. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
  36. ↑ "Weijia Jiang asked a question that left Trump unable to respond. So let's talk about what the answer actually is". The Independent. May 1, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
  37. ↑ Barnes, Patricia (May 12, 2020). "The Tiresome Taunting Of President Trump". Forbes. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  38. ↑ "CBS White House reporter Weijia Jiang is writing a memoir". ABC News. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  39. ↑ "CBS News Correspondent Weijia Jiang Reflects On Growing Up In West Virginia, Being An 'Other'". WVPB. March 2, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  40. ↑ "PBS Washington Week Profiles: Weijia Jiang". Washington Week. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  41. ↑ "2008 Regional Edward R. Murrow Award winners". www.rtdna.org. Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  42. ↑ "WBOC Wins 11 Awards in AP Contest; WBOC.com Named Outstanding Web Site". www.wboc.com. Archived from the original on July 16, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  43. ↑ "Travis Lowe – $48,636 in Political Contributions for 2016". www.campaignmoney.com.
  44. ↑ "Weijia Jiang: 5 Things About The Female CBS Reporter Who Donald Trump Ordered To 'Keep Your Voice Down'". Hollywood Life. April 2, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
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