Jessica Yellin

Jessica Sage Yellin (born February 25, 1971) is an American journalist. Focused primarily on politics, she was CNN's Chief White House Correspondent in Washington, D.C., from 2011 to 2013. Described as "one of the most powerful women in Washington," Yellin began reporting for CNN as the network's senior political correspondent in 2007, covering Capitol Hill, domestic politics, and the White House. Her debut novel, Savage News, was published in April 2019.

Yellin was born to a Jewish family in Los Angeles, California, the only daughter of Adele Marilyn (née Adest) and Ira Yellin. She has one brother, Seth. Her father, the son of an Orthodox rabbi, was a prominent real estate developer who focused on restoring older homes and neighborhoods in Los Angeles. He also was a past president of the American Jewish Committee. 

Jessica attended St. Augustine-by-the-Sea elementary school (now named Crossroads Elementary of the Crossroads School for the Arts and Sciences) in Santa Monica, California. She was president of her high school graduating class at The Westlake School for Girls in Los Angeles and graduated from Harvard College magna cum laude, where she was elected a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Yellin joined CNN as a Capitol Hill correspondent in August 2007. As Chief White House correspondent, she conducted an in-depth interview with President Barack Obama that aired throughout the Democratic Convention and helped shape the network's coverage. She provided breaking news and analysis on President Obama's administration. During the 2012 election, she interviewed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, First Lady Michelle Obama, former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, House Speaker John Boehner, and former top economist Larry Summers. 

Prior to serving as Chief White House Correspondent, Yellin served as National Political Correspondent at CNN, where she traveled the country covering hotly contested races throughout the network’s 2008 and 2012 ‘America Votes’ election coverage. Yellin has also covered significant policy debates in Washington, including the push to reform the financial regulatory system.

Prior to CNN, Yellin was a White House correspondent for ABC News. She began with ABC in July 2003 and reported on politics and culture for such programs as Good Morning America and Nightline. She has interviewed Presidents Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, and First Lady Laura Bush. She has also reported from around the globe, including Russia, China, Europe, Latin America, and Mongolia.

She was previously an overnight anchor and correspondent for MSNBC. She covered the 2000 recount in Florida as a general assignment reporter at WTVT-TV in Tampa. She began her broadcast career in 1998 as a general assignment reporter for Orlando's 24-hour cable news channel, Central Florida News 13. In 1999, she was named morning anchor.

Yellin’s work has been published in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Details magazine, and Entertainment Weekly. Her experience includes working in Los Angeles and reporting for George Magazine. Before this, she served as a front-of-the-book editor at Los Angeles Magazine, contributing and editing stories on politics, Hollywood, and cultural issues.

In August 2013, Yellin became chief domestic affairs correspondent and also served as a substitute anchor. Reportedly dissatisfied with the move, Yellin decided to leave CNN in October of that same year. In 2017, on Instagram, Yellin launched News Not Noise.