Press Club to honor NBC's Kristen Welker with Fourth Estate Award Nov. 28
Kristen Welker, NBC News chief White House correspondent and new moderator of “Meet the Press,” will receive the National Press Club’s Fourth Estate Award on Tuesday, Nov. 28. The Fourth Estate is the Club's highest honor and will mark its 50th anniversary this year.
Welker became the 13th moderator of NBC's "Meet the Press,” the longest-running show on television, in September. She is the second woman and first person of color to moderate the program.
The gala will begin with a reception at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and the awards program starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $175 for Club members and $350 for the general public. Tickets can be purchased here.
Welker has covered the White House for NBC News since December 2011 and added “Weekend Today” co-anchoring duties in January 2020. She moderated the final presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden in October 2020 and was a moderator of the fifth Democratic presidential debate in November 2019.
“Kristen’s coverage of the White House and Washington through multiple administrations consistently demonstrates her skill, integrity, and dedication to high journalism standards. Her reporting commands our attention, just as her moderation skills command a debate stage,” said Eileen O’Reilly, president of the National Press Club. “Kristen embodies the values we celebrate with this award and is a fantastic role model for journalists worldwide. We are thrilled to honor her and celebrate her role as moderator of ‘Meet The Press.’ ”
The evening also will honor the winners of the John Aubuchon Press Freedom Awards: Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter who has been detained in Russia since March 29 and is falsely accused of espionage, and Iranian journalists Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, who recently were sentenced to six and seven years in prison, respectively, on charges related to national security, which can carry a death sentence.
Kat Stafford of the Associated Press, the winner of the Neil and Susan Sheehan Award for Investigative Journalism, also will be recognized at the dinner.
The dinner is a fundraiser for the Club’s nonprofit affiliate, the National Press Club Journalism Institute. The Institute provides training that equips journalists with skills and standards to inform the public, advocates for press freedom, provides career support for journalists, and provides scholarships to aspiring journalists.
For information on sponsorship opportunities please email Beth Francesco, executive director of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, at [email protected].