Jen Psaki is an American political communicator who worked for two Democratic presidents and now hosts a primetime news show on MS NOW. Most people first learned her name when she became the 34th White House press secretary under President Joe Biden in January 2021. But her story is longer than that one job. This Jen Psaki biography covers her early life, her career from campaign trails to television, the criticism she has faced, and what she is doing in 2026.
Jen Psaki Quick Facts
Before the details, here is a short summary. It is useful if you only need the basics.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Jennifer Rene Psaki |
| Born | December 1, 1978 (age 47) |
| Birthplace | Sources differ: Wikipedia says New York City; IMDb says Stamford, Connecticut |
| Raised in | Stamford, Connecticut |
| Education | College of William & Mary (English and sociology, 2000) |
| Known for | White House press secretary (2021–2022); host of The Briefing with Jen Psaki |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Greg Mecher (married 2010) |
| Children | Two |
| Author of | Say More (2024) |
Jen Psaki Early Life and Education
Psaki is the oldest of three daughters. Her mother, Eileen, is a psychotherapist, and her father, James, is a retired real estate developer. She has Greek and Irish family roots, and her paternal grandfather served as a combat medic in World War II and the Korean War. Her parents later separated.
There is one small factual disagreement worth noting. Wikipedia lists New York City as her birthplace, while IMDb says Stamford, Connecticut. Because sources conflict and I could not confirm it from a birth record, I list it as unclear. What all sources agree on is that she grew up in Stamford and graduated from Greenwich High School in 1996.
She then attended the College of William & Mary in Virginia and graduated in 2000 with degrees in English and sociology. In college she swam backstroke for two years on the school team and served as president of her Chi Omega chapter. These details are small, but they show a person who was already comfortable with leadership and teamwork before politics became her job.
Jen Psaki Career: From Campaigns to the White House
Psaki started in politics in 2001, working on the re-election campaigns of Tom Harkin for U.S. Senate and Tom Vilsack for governor in Iowa. In 2004 she became deputy press secretary for John Kerry’s presidential campaign. She then spent 2005 and 2006 as communications director for Representative Joseph Crowley and as a regional press secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. This was where she also met her future husband.
Her big step came in 2008, when she worked as traveling press secretary on Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. After Obama won, she followed him to the White House as deputy press secretary and was promoted to deputy communications director in December 2009. She left in September 2011 to work at the public relations firm Global Strategy Group. In 2012 she came back as press secretary for Obama’s re-election campaign.
In 2013 she became spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, a job where she answered questions on foreign policy almost every day. She returned to the White House in April 2015 as communications director and stayed until the Obama administration ended in January 2017. After that, she worked as a political commentator for CNN from 2017 until late 2020.
| Year | Role |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Iowa campaigns (Harkin and Vilsack) |
| 2004 | Deputy press secretary, Kerry campaign |
| 2008 | Traveling press secretary, Obama campaign |
| 2009–2011 | White House deputy press secretary, then deputy communications director |
| 2013–2015 | State Department spokesperson |
| 2015–2017 | White House communications director |
| 2017–2020 | CNN political commentator |
| 2021–2022 | White House press secretary (Biden) |
| 2022–present | MSNBC, now MS NOW |
Press Secretary Under Joe Biden
After leaving CNN in November 2020, Psaki joined the Biden–Harris transition team. Later that month she was named White House press secretary, and she gave her first briefing on the evening of January 20, 2021. She held the job until May 13, 2022, when her deputy, Karine Jean-Pierre, took over. The period was not easy, since it followed the January 6 Capitol attack and came during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her time in the job also had some difficult moments. In October 2021, a watchdog group accused her of breaking the Hatch Act, a law that limits political activity by federal employees, over comments she made about the Virginia governor’s race. I did not confirm the final outcome of that complaint, so it should be read only as an accusation. In December 2021, she drew criticism for a sarcastic answer about mailing free COVID tests to Americans. She did not apologize, but the administration made free tests available about two weeks later.
Media Career at MSNBC and MS NOW
MSNBC announced in May 2022 that it had hired Psaki as a contributor, and her own show began on March 19, 2023, as a Sunday program called Inside with Jen Psaki. It quickly became one of the network’s most-watched weekend shows. In September 2023 it added a Monday night edition, and in May 2025 it moved to primetime as The Briefing with Jen Psaki, airing Tuesday through Friday at 9 p.m. Eastern. After MSNBC changed its name to MS NOW in late 2025, the show continued under the new brand.
Her move to television was not welcomed by everyone. Some NBC journalists worried that hiring a recent White House press secretary as an anchor could hurt the network’s reputation for neutrality. There were also questions about her job talks with networks while she was still press secretary. She has described her show as a “big picture” look at the week’s news, but critics on the right see it as partisan, so readers should judge that for themselves.
In May 2024 she published a book called Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World. It mixes stories from government with advice on how to communicate clearly, and it became a New York Times bestseller. The book also caused a small controversy. It said Biden did not check his watch during a ceremony for U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan, but photos showed that he had. Psaki said she would remove the statement from future versions. She also gave a transcribed interview to a House committee about the Afghanistan withdrawal on July 26, 2024.
Latest Jen Psaki News in 2026
Psaki remains one of MS NOW’s main voices heading into the 2026 midterm elections. Her show is still on air Tuesday through Friday, and her network profile says she also hosts a podcast called The Blueprint with Jen Psaki. A newsletter with the same name was paused in early 2026, with the network saying it planned to continue coverage in other ways.
The most recent story is about press access. On September 23, 2026, MS NOW reported that Psaki criticized the White House over its move to revoke press access for CNN, Politico, and MS NOW. She said officials were pointing to a 2009 dispute between Obama’s team and Fox News as a comparison, and she argued that comparison was wrong. She was on the Obama communications team at the time. This is developing news, so details may change.
Jen Psaki Personal Life
Psaki married Greg Mecher on May 8, 2010. The two met in 2006 at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and Mecher has worked as chief of staff to members of Congress. They have two children. Beyond that, she keeps most details of her family life private, so I have not included anything I could not confirm.
There are many websites that publish a Jen Psaki net worth number. I could not find a figure from a reliable, verified source, so I am not repeating any of them.
How This Was Researched
I wrote this profile using reference pages, network biographies, encyclopedia entries, and recent news coverage from MS NOW. I compared career dates across sources and marked the birthplace and the Hatch Act outcome as unclear where sources differed or lacked detail. Many existing biography pages mix old facts with gossip and skip 2026 developments, so I focused on a clear career timeline, fair coverage of the criticism, and the latest news.
Accuracy Note
This biography is based on publicly available information, including reference sources and verified news coverage, and it reflects details as of September 2026. If you spot anything outdated or incorrect, please let us know so we can update it.
Written and researched by Hassan, contributor at ntx magazine.
Jen Psaki FAQ
Who is Jen Psaki?
Jen Psaki is a former White House press secretary under President Biden and the host of The Briefing with Jen Psaki on MS NOW. She also worked in the Obama White House and the State Department.
How old is Jen Psaki?
She was born on December 1, 1978, so she is 47 as of September 2026.
When was Jen Psaki White House press secretary?
She served from January 20, 2021, to May 13, 2022, as the 34th person in the job.
What show does Jen Psaki host?
She hosts The Briefing with Jen Psaki on MS NOW, Tuesday through Friday at 9 p.m. Eastern.
Is Jen Psaki married?
Yes. She married Greg Mecher in 2010, and they have two children.
What book did Jen Psaki write?
She wrote Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World, published in May 2024.
What did Jen Psaki study?
She studied English and sociology at the College of William & Mary and graduated in 2000.
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Written by Hassan, founder and editor of NTX Magazine — an independent news and biography publication. Every article is researched and cross-checked against multiple public sources before publishing; see our Sourcing Standards page for details.
