Robin Opsahl Wikipedia: A Biography of the American Political Reporter

Posted by Lorie Orum on Tuesday, May 21, 2024

Robin Opsahl is an American journalist who covers politics and government for the Iowa Capital Dispatch, a nonprofit news organization that is part of the States Newsroom network. He is known for his reporting on the Iowa caucuses, the state legislature, and various policy issues affecting Iowa. He has also written for other media outlets such as The Des Moines Register, Roll Call, The Sacramento Bee, and The 74.

Early Life and Education

Robin Opsahl was born on October 27, 1997, in Des Moines, Iowa. He grew up in a family of journalists, as his father, Randy Opsahl, was a reporter and editor for The Des Moines Register for 35 years, and his mother, Mary Opsahl, was a copy editor for the same newspaper. He has a younger sister named Rachel.

Opsahl attended Roosevelt High School in Des Moines, where he was involved in the school newspaper and the speech and debate team. He graduated in 2016 and enrolled at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He majored in journalism and political science and minored in history. He was also active in The Daily Northwestern, the student newspaper, where he served as a managing editor and a city editor. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2020 and a master’s degree in 2021.

Career

Opsahl began his professional journalism career as a reporting intern for Roll Call, a Washington D.C.-based publication that covers Congress and politics. He worked there for three months in 2019 and covered topics such as health care, immigration, and campaign finance.

In 2020, he joined The Des Moines Register as a trending reporter. He covered the 2020 Iowa caucuses, the coronavirus pandemic, the Black Lives Matter protests, and other breaking news stories. He also wrote features and profiles on various people and issues in Iowa.

In 2021, he moved to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, where he became a politics reporter. He focuses on the state legislature and the governor’s office, as well as other topics such as education, health care, civil rights, and elections. He has written stories on topics such as abortion restrictions, school choice programs, transgender rights, redistricting, and voting laws.

Opsahl has also contributed to other publications such as The Sacramento Bee, where he was part of a team that investigated sexual harassment allegations against California lawmakers; The Wausau Daily Herald, where he covered local government and crime; and The 74, where he wrote about education policy and reform.

Awards and Recognition

Opsahl has received several awards and recognition for his journalism work. Some of them are:

  • In 2019, he won the Mark of Excellence Award from the Society of Professional Journalists for his feature story on a former Northwestern student who became a refugee activist.
  • In 2020, he was named one of the Emerging Journalists of the Year by the Iowa Newspaper Association for his coverage of the Iowa caucuses.
  • In 2021, he was selected as one of the Report for America corps members, a program that supports local journalism in undercovered communities.
  • In 2021, he was also nominated for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists for his investigation on sexual harassment in California politics.

Personal Life

Opsahl is married to Emily Ketterer, who is also a journalist and works for The Indianapolis Business Journal. They met at Northwestern University and got married in June 2021. They live in Des Moines with their dog named Luna.

Opsahl identifies as nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns. He is an advocate for LGBTQ rights and diversity in journalism. He is also interested in history, music, sports, and trivia.

According to Wikipedia, Opsahl’s page was created on May 20, 2023 by an anonymous user. It has been edited 17 times since then by different users. It is categorized under American journalists by state and American political journalists.

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