Ailsa Chang
Ailsa Chang is an award-winning journalist who hosts All Things Considered along with Ari Shapiro, Audie Cornish, and Mary Louise Kelly. She landed in public radio after practicing law for a few years.
Chang is a former Planet Money correspondent, where she got to geek out on the law while covering the underground asylum industry in the largest Chinatown in America, privacy rights in the cell phone age, the government's doomed fight to stop racist trademarks, and the money laundering case federal agents built against one of President Trump's top campaign advisers.
Previously, she was a congressional correspondent with NPR's Washington Desk. She covered battles over healthcare, immigration, gun control, executive branch appointments, and the federal budget.
Chang started out as a radio reporter in 2009, and has since earned a string of national awards for her work. In 2012, she was honored with the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Silver Baton for her investigation into the New York City Police Department's "stop-and-frisk" policy and allegations of unlawful marijuana arrests by officers. The series also earned honors from Investigative Reporters and Editors and the Society of Professional Journalists.
She was also the recipient of the Daniel Schorr Journalism Award, a National Headliner Award, and an honor from Investigative Reporters and Editors for her investigation on how Detroit's broken public defender system leaves lawyers with insufficient resources to effectively represent their clients.
In 2011, the New York State Associated Press Broadcasters Association named Chang as the winner of the Art Athens Award for General Excellence in Individual Reporting for radio. In 2015, she won a National Journalism Award from the Asian American Journalists Association for her coverage of Capitol Hill.
Prior to coming to NPR, Chang was an investigative reporter at NPR Member station WNYC from 2009 to 2012 in New York City, focusing on criminal justice and legal affairs. She was a Kroc fellow at NPR from 2008 to 2009, as well as a reporter and producer for NPR Member station KQED in San Francisco.
The former lawyer served as a law clerk to Judge John T. Noonan Jr. on the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco.
Chang graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University where she received her bachelor's degree.
She earned her law degree with distinction from Stanford Law School, where she won the Irving Hellman Jr. Special Award for the best piece written by a student in the Stanford Law Review in 2001.
Chang was also a Fulbright Scholar at Oxford University, where she received a master's degree in media law. She also has a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.
She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she never got to have a dog. But now she's the proud mama of Mickey Chang, a shih tzu who enjoys slapping high-fives and mingling with senators.
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The House appears to have reached a trillion-dollar deal to keep the government running, but leaves the Senate just hours to speed the bill through — and some senators may prefer to take their time.
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A year after Democratic senators invoked a "nuclear option" to stop GOP filibusters of confirmation votes, Republicans are debating whether to switch back. Some say they're sick of the fighting. -
Kentucky Republican Mitch McConnell has wanted to be Senate majority leader since grade school. Now, as he starts his sixth term in office, he'll finally get his wish. -
The GOP scored major victories in the midterm elections. The wins reshape the political dynamic in Washington and complicate the legislative agenda for President Obama's final two years in office.
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If the GOP takes over the Senate, the man expected to become majority leader is Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. But first, he has to win a sixth term in a state where his popularity has been sagging. -
If Democrat Michelle Nunn wins in Georgia, it will likely be because of strong African-American voter turnout. Black churches are busing congregants to early voting locations after Sunday services. -
States that could determine which party controls the Senate next year have been barraged for months with campaign ads. For better or for worse, here are some of the most noteworthy.
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A military resume has long been a big plus for political candidates. Only five female veterans have served in Congress, but 11 are running this year — including Republican Wendy Rogers in Arizona. -
Voters in New Hampshire's 1st District have swung back and forth in recent congressional elections. This year, Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter meets former GOP Rep. Frank Guinta for the third time. -
Since the GOP retook the House, the chamber once brought the country to the brink of a debt default and once shut down the government. But in election years, including this one, there's no such drama.
