In a note to staff this morning, ABC News president James Goldston announced new roles for three of the network’s political journalists: Jonathan Karl, Cecilia Vega and Tom Llamas.
Karl has been named ABC News’ Chief Washington Correspondent and Chief White House Correspondent. “Jonathan is uniquely qualified for his new role as one of the few reporters in Washington who has reported on four key beats – the White House, Congress, State Department and Pentagon,” said Goldston. “The new Trump Administration will be the fourth he’s covered in an impressive career, and his extensive reporting on the 2016 election and razor-sharp analysis distinguished our coverage of a race unlike any other in modern history.” Karl was recognized last year with the Joan Shorenstein Barone Award for Excellence for the second time.
Vega is leaving New York, where she anchored the Saturday edition of World News Tonight, to join Karl in Washington to cover the White House full-time. Vega now has the title of Senior White House Correspondent. “She was an unstoppable force on the Clinton campaign trail, logging over 239,000 miles in the past two years, pressing Hilary Clinton and Bernie Sanders for answers – all while anchoring the Saturday edition of World News Tonight,” said Goldston. “She is an exceptional storyteller who has demonstrated a relentless determination since she joined ABC News in 2011.” Vega also covered the Olympics, the papal conclave, the 2014 midterm elections and the election of President Obama during her tenure at the network.
Vega joined ABC News in 2011, and reported from the network’s L.A. bureau up until March 2015.
Previously the anchor for the Sunday edition of World News Tonight, Llamas is now Chief National Correspondent and anchor of both the Saturday and Sunday editions of World News Tonight. “Tom spent over 500 days covering the presidential campaign, often racing back to New York to anchor World News Tonight on Sunday evenings,” said Goldston. “He has proved a powerful storyteller. In the last two years at ABC, Tom covered the vast field of GOP candidates and Donald Trump’s successful presidential campaign, the trial of the Boston Marathon bombers, the tragic death of Tamir Rice in Cleveland and the Ebola outbreak in the U.S.”
Llamas joined ABC News from WNBC in New York in September 2014 where he was an investigative reporter and anchor of the 5 p.m. news.