Perry Stein joins National as a Justice Department reporter at The Washington Post

Announcement from National Editor Matea Gold, Deputy National Editor Phil Rucker, National Security Editor Peter Finn and Deputy National Security Editor Debbi Wilgoren:

We are thrilled to announce that Perry Stein will join National as a Justice Department reporter, one of our more competitive and demanding beats.

Perry joins Devlin Barrett and David Nakamura on our Justice Department team at a consequential moment, as the criminal investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol intensifies and the Biden administration confronts changes in abortion law, voting access and demands for police accountability. At the same time, federal law enforcement agencies are grappling with spikes in domestic terrorism, gun proliferation and mass shootings. In addition to covering breaking news, Perry will take on deep accountability stories about the actions of the attorney general and other Justice Department officials, as well as illuminating features about the ways those decisions impact people’s everyday lives.

Perry has an impressive record of source-based beat reporting on Local, where for the past four years she has been a stand-out D.C. education reporter, applying a skeptical, rigorous and humane approach to her coverage of an especially contentious subject. She landed scoops holding D.C.’s political and school leaders accountable for their promises, introduced readers to impressive students and explained the dynamics of the gentrifying city through its schools. Perry wrote about the impact of school choice on diversity within traditional public schools and reported extensively on how everyday gun violence impacts students’ lives and their academics. During the pandemic, she reported frequently and urgently about the city’s plans to reopen — and often, not reopen — schools, highlighting inequities across the District and spotlighting the lockdown’s severe toll on young people.

Perry started at The Post in 2015 as a breaking-news blogger for Local, a role that allowed her to spot interesting stories in every corner of the city. She reported on all things D.C., including housing issues, marijuana legalization, crime, protests and more. She spent the year after Donald Trump's 2016 election leading Metro's protest coverage, landing an A1 story on how frequent protests were a boon to the region’s portable toilet industry. Around the newsroom, she is known for her persistence, collegiality and strong ability to visualize stories that will resonate with our readers.

Before joining The Post, Perry was a staff writer at Washington City Paper, and she also has worked for the Wall Street Journal, the Miami Herald, the New Republic and NBC Washington. She graduated with a B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis.

Please congratulate Perry on her new role, which will begin August 1.