Jose A. Del Real is an independent American journalist. His work often highlights the experiences of everyday people at the center of sweeping national issues and themes.

He has reported from every corner of the United States — from family farms in the heartland to refugee settlements at the border, from wildfire evacuation zones in the West to political protests in the East, from public housing developments to presidential motorcades. Along the way, he has covered three presidential elections and filed stories from nearly all 50 states.

Jose has written about a wide range of topics: opioid addiction, cowboys, racial inequality, clean drinking water, single mothers, homelessness, political disillusionment. Tying his body of work together are questions about belonging and estrangement, about what keeps people together and what drives them apart. He is guided by the conviction that the stories of ordinary people are worth telling, and that in doing so we can perhaps begin to understand the big, complicated issues of our day.

He previously worked as a features writer, national correspondent and political correspondent for The Washington Post and The New York Times. In 2020, Jose was named to Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30 media list and received the New America Award for public service journalism about immigrant communities. His series on truth, trust and conspiracy theories in America was recognized with the Livingston Award for National Reporting in 2022.

Jose lives in Washington, D.C., with his husband. He was born in California’s Central Valley shortly before his parents — Mexican immigrants — moved the family to Anchorage, Alaska, where he grew up. He graduated from Harvard College.