Portrait of Eric Schmitt

Eric Schmitt

I write about U.S. national security, with a particular focus on U.S. military affairs and counterterrorism issues overseas. I have written extensively on security matters in the Middle East, South Asia, Africa and Europe.

I have been a reporter at The New York Times for 40 years — starting as a news assistant and working my way up to cover the U.S. military, counterterrorism and other national security issues for more than three decades. I have covered every conflict involving the U.S. military since the 1991 Persian Gulf war, and reported extensively from Iraq, Afghanistan, Africa and the Middle East. I have shared four Pulitzer Prizes. I got my start reporting on local education at the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick, Wash.

I am the co-author of “Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda.” I earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Williams College, studied in Madrid for a year and was a journalism fellow at Stanford University. I was born in Minneapolis and reared in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Keeping my sources protected is a top priority for me, especially during sensitive or high-risk stories. I strive to be accurate and fair in my coverage, no matter what the subject. And, like all Times journalists, I follow the standards in our Ethical Journalism Handbook.

I don’t back away from difficult stories, and will give subjects a chance to comment and express their side of a story.

I do not participate in politics, nor do I make political donations. I am always careful to identify myself as a reporter for The Times in news-related conversations.

Latest

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    A Terrorist Attack in Russia

    The tragedy in a Moscow suburb is a blow to Vladimir V. Putin, coming only days after his stage-managed election victory.

    By Sabrina Tavernise, Anton Troianovski, Will Reid, Rachelle Bonja, Patricia Willens, Dan Powell, Marion Lozano and Alyssa Moxley

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