Vanessa Romo
Digital Editor
Vanessa Romo is a reporter for NPR's News Desk. She covers breaking news on a wide range of topics, weighing in daily on everything from immigration and the treatment of migrant children, to a war-crimes trial where a witness claimed he was the actual killer, to an alleged sex cult. She has also covered the occasional cat-clinging-to-the-hood-of-a-car story. Before her stint on the News Desk, Romo spent the early months of the Trump Administration on the Washington Desk covering stories about culture and politics – the voting habits of the post-millennial generation, the rise of Maxine Waters as a septuagenarian pop culture icon and DACA quinceañeras as Trump protests. In 2016, she was at the core of the team that launched and produced The New York Times' first political podcast, The Run-Up with Michael Barbaro. Prior to that, Romo was a Spencer Education Fellow at Columbia University's School of Journalism where she began working on a radio documentary about a pilot program in Los Angeles teaching black and Latino students to code switch. Romo has also traveled extensively through the Member station world in California and Washington. As the education reporter at Southern California Public Radio, she covered the region's K-12 school districts and higher education institutions and won the Education Writers Association first place award as well as a Regional Edward R. Murrow for Hard News Reporting. Before that, she covered business and labor for Member station KNKX, keeping an eye on global companies including Amazon, Boeing, Starbucks and Microsoft. A Los Angeles native, she is a graduate of Loyola Marymount University, where she received a degree in history. She also earned a master's degree in Journalism from NYU. She loves all things camaron-based.
After nearly a decade, Oprah Winfrey is set to depart the board of WeightWatchers
Enlarge this image Oprah Winfrey, pictured in January, said she will donate her stake in WeightWatchers and proceeds fro...
Brumation and torpor: How animals survive cold snaps by playing dead-ish
Enlarge this image A stunned iguana lies on the sidewalk after having fallen from a tree on Jan. 6, 2010, in Surfside, F...
Jamaica and the Bahamas are pushing back against U.S. travel warnings
Enlarge this image The U.S. State Department issued a Level 3 travel advisory for Jamaica, saying "Violent crimes, such...
JN.1 takes over as the most prevalent COVID-19 variant. Here's what you need to know
Enlarge this image The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that up to 86% of new COVID-19 cases stem fr...
Bobi's 'oldest ever dog' title is in question as Guinness World Record investigates
Enlarge this image As of Tuesday, Guinness World Record said it is reviewing evidence of Bobi's lifespan, while also loo...
Amid scrutiny, Boeing promises more quality checks. But is it enough?
Enlarge this image the Federal Aviation Administration has grounded 171 of the 737 Max 9 planes in the United States, as...
Martin Luther King Jr. was once considered 'radical.' Here's how he came to be lauded
Enlarge this image During his lifetime, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s views were considered radical by much of the white...
Claudine Gay's resignation highlights the trouble with regulating academic writing
Enlarge this image Claudine Gay speaks during commencement ceremonies at Harvard University in May. Gay resigned as Harv...
Apes remember long-lost friends and family they haven't seen in decades
Enlarge this image Chimpanzees and bonobos recognize photos of groupmates they haven't seen for more than 25 years, and...
Blizzard conditions, freezing rain and strong winds slow holiday travel
Enlarge this image A tractor trailer veers into ditch on Christmas Day on Interstate 80 in Nebraska as a winter storm pu...
