Tamara Keith (’01) has worked in public radio for 25 years and during that time has covered four presidents. She got her start on the air at the age of 15, reading an essay she wrote about back-to-school jitters for “Weekend Edition Sunday,” then officially launched her career in 2000 as a reporter/director of KQED’s “The California Report” while studying at the J-School. In 2018, Keith was elected to serve on the board of the White House Correspondents’ Association, then served as its president from 2022–23. She and her husband live in Virginia with their teenage son. Keith also did her undergraduate work at UC Berkeley (‘99), majoring in philosophy. She tells Bonnie Eslinger (’98) about her favorite J-School memories, gives some good career advice for journalists and talks about her work posing questions to the president on behalf of the public.
Q. What is one memory you hold from your time studying at the J-School?
I was just telling my son this story, so why not share it with everyone?! During my second year at the J-School, I was also employed part-time at KQED Radio directing “The California Report.”
That meant going to work every day from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. and then heading straight to the J-School for class. And the first class of the day was H.E.L.: history, ethics and law. It’s extremely important stuff that I use more regularly in my work now than I ever imagined at the time. But I was exhausted and I kept nodding off in class — and I totally thought I was getting away with it until I found out the distinguished First Amendment lawyer teaching the class knew my name. And that was the day I dropped the law half of the class.
Another memory was lining up at graduation and turning to the friends around me and having this revelation that we really didn’t want the collaborative and creative magic of our time at the J-School to end. That’s how our long-running, if never wildly successful podcast B-Side Radio was conceived. It’s a project I am still very proud of and helped make me the broadcaster I am today.
Q. Is there a particular off-campus spot that you remember fondly from your time in Berkeley?
Because I also went to undergrad at Cal, my bias is toward restaurants on the south side of campus, where I lived. I always preferred Fat Slice over Blondie’s. I loved their veggie pizza and it was so amazingly cheap, $1 a slice and later $1.25, which might explain why it is no longer in business. The best donuts in the world are still at KingPin Donuts when they are fresh out of the fryer. Another spot I loved was the Blue Nile, an Ethiopian restaurant known for serving honey wine to underaged diners, but it too is long gone. There was also an awesome big salad restaurant, but alas, it is gone too.
Q. Where do you presently live? What do you enjoy doing when you have free time?
I live in Northern Virginia and work in Washington, D.C. Someday I aspire to have a cool hobby, but right now I spend any free time I can get running and lifting weights. You know, to attempt to stay sane. For fun, my husband and I enjoy going to concerts. And when the weather is nice we play in a pickup softball game with a bunch of D.C. punk rockers. I am also the catcher on the Bad News Babes, a media team that competes against female members of Congress in the annual Congressional Women’s Softball Game. Again, my J-School education pays off. The J-School Juggernauts softball team prepared me for a lifetime on the field.
Q. What advice do you have for someone just starting their journalism career? Or what’s a good piece of journalism advice you received?
Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. That’s not advice anyone gave me. Instead a lot of people told me ‘no’ and I discovered being underestimated is a pretty awesome motivator. The two pieces of advice I got that were really helpful: ‘Make yourself indispensable’ and ‘Make yourself a brand.’ Of course, that’s also super-intimidating advice to be given and felt impossible at the time, but it has all worked out.
Q. What do you appreciate most about being a White House correspondent?
Flying on Air Force One is very cool. It really is an awesome aircraft and the food is terrific too. But more seriously, what I appreciate is the opportunity to be there on behalf of the American people, in the briefing room, in the Oval Office and yes, on Air Force One. When I am asking the president questions, it’s not for me. It’s for our audience. Attempting to pry out the truth (or reveal a lack of truth) from the leader of the free world is an incredible honor and a sacred obligation. This is the fourth presidency I’ve covered. Every one of them has been different. Even when the topics are the same, the circumstances and stories are always changing. It’s never boring!
