1981

Priest graduates from the University of California, Santa Cruz, with a bachelor’s degree in political science.

1985

Priest begins a master’s degree program at Columbia University in international affairs and takes on a couple of internships at newspapers beginning in the local section. Having a strong desire to work as a foreign correspondent, Priest is accepted by The Washington Post as a summer intern on the foreign desk.

Editing stories on the civil war in Lebanon and conflicts in Latin America, Priest is inspired to leave school and pursue a journalism career. Unable to be hired at the Post because of a lack of reporting experience, Priest takes a job at the St. Petersburg Times as a city reporter.

1986

Priest begins her career at The Washington Post as an assistant foreign editor, eventually transitioning to a metro reporter.

1987

Priest investigates poor conditions within the Postal Service and overcrowding in prisons, expanding her reporting to a national scale.

1989

One of the first reporters on the ground, Priest covers the U.S. invasion of Panama .

1990

Priest travels to Iraq, hiding the pregnancy of her first baby, just before the start of the Persian Gulf War . She covers a group of women arguing for the release of their husbands, who were contract workers being held hostage by Saddam Hussein. A month later the war began, and while impressed with her reporting, the foreign editor wants Priest to return to Washington. But she asks to remain in the region, covering casualties.

1991

Priest continues to report on the military and also writes about Washington regulatory issues and the 1993 Clinton White House health care initiative.

1999

Priest covers the U.S. Army Special Forces in Asia, Africa and South America and then travels on peacekeeping missions in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan with Army infantry units, eventually covering the war in Kosovo.

2001

Looking at how American generals, admirals and emissaries had independently shaped foreign policy, Priest writes a series called “The Proconsuls: A Four-Star Foreign Policy?” The series wins the Gerald R. Ford Prize for Distinguished Reporting on National Defense and the State Department’s Excellence in Journalism Award. Priest receives a MacArthur Foundation grant and is a guest scholar in residence at the U.S. Institute of Peace. She is also a guest speaker and host of “A Conversation on Civil-Military Affairs and US Diplomacy” for the Secretary’s Open Forum .

2003

Based on reporting from 18 countries, Priest writes “The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace With America’s Military.” The book is published as the U.S. is about to embark on the Iraq War , and it examines America’s dependence on the military to manage world affairs. “The Mission” is a Pulitzer Prize finalist for General Nonfiction in 2004.

2005

Priest is named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting for her coverage of U.S. intelligence operations. She is also a Pulitzer finalist in National Reporting for her reporting on the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

In a front-page article , Priest reveals the existence of CIA secret prisons outside of American borders. This work wins the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting , the George Polk Award for National Reporting and the Overseas Press Club’s Bob Considine Award for interpretation of international affairs.

2007

Priest works with colleague Anne Hull on the degrading conditions for Iraq war veterans at Walter Reed Medical Center . Their reporting revealed the poor treatment of wounded American soldiers and results in the resignation of Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey and the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the newspaper.

2008

Priest becomes a regular contributor to “CBS Evening News” while continuing to report for The Washington Post.

2010

After a two-year investigation, Priest and Post colleague William Arkin write a series of articles, accompanied by an interactive website, called “ Top Secret America .” The series examines the post-Sept. 11 growth in government organizations and private companies that work on intelligence, counterterrorism and national security and how the system lacks adequate oversight.

2011

Based on their investigation, Priest and Arkin write the book “Top Secret America: The Rise of the New American Security State.” Priest also does an interview with the PBS show “Frontline.”