Ari Shapiro

Ari Shapiro has been NPR's White House Correspondent since 2010. His stories appear on all of NPR's newsmagazines, including All Things Considered and Morning Edition, where he is also a frequent guest host.

Shapiro began reporting on the White House after five years as NPR's Justice Correspondent, covering national security and counterterrorism during one of the most tumultuous periods in the Justice Department's history.

He spent 2012 on the campaign trail, leading NPR's coverage of Mitt Romney during the primary and general election. He also travels widely overseas in his reporting, including visits to Afghanistan with President Obama and to Iraq with Attorney General Michael Mukasey.

The first NPR reporter to be promoted to correspondent before age 30, Shapiro has been recognized with several journalism prizes, including The American Bar Association's Silver Gavel for his coverage of prisoners lost in Louisiana's detention system after Hurricane Katrina; The Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize for his investigation of methamphetamine use and HIV transmission; the Columbia Journalism Review's "laurel" recognition of his investigation into disability benefits for injured veterans; and the American Judges' Association's American Gavel for a body of work reporting on courts and the justice system. He regularly appears as a guest analyst on CNN, PBS, NBC, and other TV news outlets.

Before covering the Justice Department, Shapiro worked as a public radio reporter in Atlanta, Miami, and Boston.

Shapiro moonlights as a guest singer with the "little orchestra" Pink Martini, based in his hometown of Portland, Oregon. Since he debuted with them at the Hollywood Bowl in 2009, he has performed with the band at many of the world's most storied venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, L'Olympia in Paris, and Mount Lycabettus in Athens. He has recorded songs on three of Pink Martini's albums, in five languages.

Shapiro is a magna cum laude graduate of Yale. He began his journalism career in 2001 in the office of NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg. Shapiro was born in Fargo, North Dakota, and grew up in Portland, Oregon.

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5:44pm

Fri April 12, 2013
It's All Politics

'We Have To Do More': Michelle Obama's Next Four Years

Originally published on Fri April 12, 2013 10:07 pm

Credit Nancy Stone / AP

This week marked a new step in Michelle Obama's evolution as first lady. In her hometown of Chicago, she delivered one of the most emotional speeches of her career — about kids dying from gun violence.

"I'm not talking about something that's happening in a war zone halfway around the world," she said. "I am talking about what's happening in the city that we call home."

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4:59pm

Tue April 9, 2013
It's All Politics

Will The Future GOP Be More Libertarian?

Originally published on Tue April 9, 2013 7:34 pm

Credit Alex Wong / Getty Images

Republicans don't often make high-profile speeches at Howard University, one of the country's most prominent historically black schools. But on Wednesday, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul will talk to Howard students about how his party can be more inclusive.

Paul believes one answer is libertarianism — and party leaders are starting to think he might be on to something.

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3:21am

Mon April 8, 2013
It's All Politics

Why Politicians Want Children To Be Seen And Heard

Originally published on Tue April 9, 2013 7:36 pm

Credit Mark Wilson / Getty Images

6:11am

Sat March 30, 2013
Same-Sex Marriage And The Supreme Court

Gay Marriage And The Evolving Language Of Love

Originally published on Sun March 31, 2013 2:01 am

In 1982, advice columnist Dear Abby published a letter from someone who'd just moved from a conservative Midwestern town to bohemian Portland, Ore.

Suddenly the advice seeker was interacting with gay couples and wanted to know: Should a letter be addressed to "Mr. John Doe and Friend?'"

Is it proper to say, "This is so-and-so and his lover"?

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6:07pm

Fri March 22, 2013
It's All Politics

Republicans Launch Mission To Turn Up Their Digital Game

Originally published on Thu March 28, 2013 7:17 pm

Credit Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

The Republican and Democratic parties have been in a digital arms race for years. And this week, Republicans frankly admitted that they are losing.

Now, the GOP has ambitious plans to improve its game.

Monday's report from the Republican National Committee puts it bluntly: "Republicans must catch up on how we utilize technology in our campaigns. The Obama team is several years ahead of everyone else in its technological advantage."

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