Helen Thomas
#womenshistoryProfiles
Helen Thomas was a pioneering American journalist who served as a member of the White House press corps during the tenures of ten U.S. presidents. She was a passionate advocate for press freedom and transparency in government.
After graduating from Wayne State University with a degree in journalism. Thomas began her career in journalism in 1943 as a copygirl for the Washington Daily News.
Her big break came in 1947 when she was hired by United Press International (UPI), where she would spend the majority of her career. Thomas quickly rose through the ranks and became a White House correspondent in 1961. Over the years, she covered every president from John F. Kennedy to Barack Obama, earning a reputation for her tenacious and incisive questioning and uncompromising journalistic integrity.
Thomas made history in 1974 when she was named UPI’s White House bureau chief, becoming the first woman to hold that position for a major news wire service.
In 2000, Thomas left UPI and joined Hearst Newspapers as a syndicated columnist. She continued to write and comment on political affairs until 2010. She died in 2013 at the age of 92