john king: CNN Chief National Correspondent and Veteran Political Journalist

Career Overview

john king is an award-winning American journalist who serves as CNN’s chief national correspondent based in Washington, D.C. With a career spanning more than three decades, King has reported from all 50 states and more than 70 international locations, covering seven presidential elections and numerous historic events.

Early Life and Education

King was born in 1962 or 1963 in Boston, Massachusetts. He is of Irish Catholic descent with ancestors from Dún Locháin, County Galway. He attended Boston Latin School and earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Rhode Island. He has also received honorary doctorates from the University of Rhode Island, American University, and Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Associated Press Career

Before joining CNN, King spent 12 years at The Associated Press, joining in 1985. He served as chief political correspondent for the last six years, heading AP’s political coverage of the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections. During his AP tenure, King broke several major political stories, including Michael Dukakis’ selection of Lloyd Bentsen as running mate in 1988 and Bill Clinton’s selection of Al Gore in 1992. He also reported on Gen. Colin Powell’s decision not to run for president and Sen. Bob Dole’s efforts to obtain Ross Perot’s endorsement in 1996.

CNN Tenure and Key Roles

King joined CNN in May 1997 and became chief national correspondent in April 2005. His CNN roles have included:

• Senior White House correspondent (1999–2005)
• Anchor of “Inside Politics”
• Anchor of “State of the Union”
• Anchor of “John King, USA”
• Lead campaign reporter for America’s Choice 2012

He pioneered the use of CNN’s “Magic Wall” for election data visualization, first introduced in 2008 and central to the network’s election coverage since.

Major Coverage and Assignments

King’s reporting portfolio includes:

• Seven presidential campaigns (through 2012 per Harvard IOP profile; continued through 2024 per CNN profile)
• Moderating three GOP presidential primary debates in 2012
• Coverage of the Iraq War and September 11 attacks while at the White House
• Reporting from the Gulf Coast during the 2010 oil spill, Tucson after the 2011 shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Joplin, Missouri after the 2011 tornado, and the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (2005)
• Traveling with Vice President Cheney to the Middle East (2002) and with Secretary of State Powell to South Asia after the 2004 tsunami
• Accompanying President Bush on a secret trip to Baghdad (2006)
• Exclusive joint interview with President Clinton and Prime Minister Blair (1998) and sole one-on-one with Clinton in Vietnam (2000)
• First Persian Gulf War, U.S. military operation in Haiti, and Nelson Mandela’s inauguration
• Leading CNN’s “All Over the Map” voter and battleground state project for the 2024 presidential cycle

Personal Life

King has been married twice: first to Jean Makie (divorced), then to fellow journalist Dana Bash from 2008 to 2012. He has three children, including one with Bash.

Awards and Recognition

King was part of CNN’s Peabody Award-winning political team for America Votes 2008 coverage and contributed to Emmy-winning 2006 mid-term election coverage. He received the top reporting prize from the Associated Press Managing Editors’ Association for his 1991 Gulf War coverage from a liberated Kuwait.