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About Elizabeth

Beth Summers is the senior politics producer for the PBS NewsHour where she oversees coverage of Congress, the White House and the Supreme Court. She joined the NewsHour in 2001 as an editorial assistant in the newsroom, and has worked as a reporter for the national desk and as well as the politics desk before becoming the NewsHour’s political director.

As a reporter for the national desk, Summers produced anniversary coverage for the March on Washington, the Voting Rights Act and the Senate Watergate hearings. Summers also conceptualized the NewsHour’s ongoing “Broken Justice” series, a multi-part, multi-media look at bipartisan efforts to reform the U.S. criminal justice system, including a short 2016 documentary following three inmates’ reintegration back into society.

Summers has covered four presidential elections for the NewsHour. She served as the lead producer for the two most recent cycles, including the 2016 Democratic primary debate and both national political conventions in 2012 and 2016. She was nominated for a News & Documentary Emmy Award for her role in producing Gwen Ifill’s 2016 town hall with President Obama in Elkhart, Indiana.

Summers earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mary Washington. She is a New York Times Fellow for its Changing Face of America project.

Full Bio

Elizabeth’s Recent Stories

Politics Jul 03

Selling Obamacare: Is the White House Ready?

The business mandate within the Affordable Care Act that requires employers to provide coverage is now delayed, and that is prompting reaction from critics who say other parts of the law should be put on hold, too -- if…

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