Journalist Judy Woodruff has spent decades covering American politics. Known for her calm, balanced reporting, Woodruff has covered every U.S. presidential election since 1976, served as anchor and managing editor of the PBS NewsHour through the end of 2022.

It’s clear that what still drives Woodruff is her curiosity about people. After stepping away from the anchor desk, Woodruff’s special reports for America at a Crossroads has given her the opportunity “to sit down with Americans across kitchen tables, across at a coffee shop, a couple of times at a bar” and ask what is on their minds.

Woodruff’s conversation about covering politics today is part of the 2026 Writer’s Symposium by the Sea. Under the theme “Writing Across the Divide,” she says the country’s division does not begin and end in Washington, but that the anger there has spread more broadly, shaped in part news and social media. What troubles her most is not just disagreement, but contempt.

Woodruff makes a strong case for journalism that listens before it judges. She says reporters need to spend more time out in communities, trying to understand where resentment comes from.

Watch the complete interview with Judy Woodruff.

Browse more programs from the Writer’s Symposium By The Sea.