Kimberly Palmer MPP 2004

Following the Money

Kimberly Palmer, MPP’04, always knew she wanted to be a writer and journalist. She interned for the Washington Post while at Amherst College and moved to Tokyo after graduation to report for the International Herald Tribune.

“I was a style and feature writer,” said Palmer, who is now an associate editor at U.S. News & World Report. She authored articles about cultural trends—like advertising, birth control, and dating.

“On the surface, these topics have nothing to do with economics and public policy, but they usually do,” she explained. “I really wanted to write more about economics and business. I felt like I was missing part of a feature story by not writing about money.”

Palmer thought a public policy graduate degree could improve her reporting. “The Harris School helped me make the switch to writing about the impact of economics and business on cultural trends.”

At U.S. News, Palmer covers consumer business and authors an online personal finance column—Alpha Consumer—that answers readers’ questions. She writes about everything from mothers increasingly negotiating flexible schedules at work to young entrepreneurs establishing charities with their new wealth to how to pay off student loans.

Because of her policy degree, Palmer said she can better analyze charts and data and asks different types of questions when interviewing researchers and pollsters. In addition, she is better versed in political economy which helps her interpret the actions of Congress. She said, “It’s all about knowing what questions to ask.”

Palmer noted that money issues are often related to personal problems—such as a death in the family, the loss of a job, or health problems—and she “loves the psychology and family aspect of personal finance.”

When asked what kind of impact she wants her writing to have, she responded, “I hope it helps the people who read it.” In fact, Palmer receives email on a regular basis from readers who identify with situations she writes about—like protecting your credit after divorcing—or to thank her for advice.

Palmer said that after a recent article on how to deal with debt after becoming disabled, she received an email from an elderly couple whose son had recently been impaired. They said her column helped them sort out their son’s debt.

And this type of response is what Palmer loves about her job. “What’s most rewarding for me is feeling like you’re helping people by providing them with information, especially personal finance stories,” she said. “It can help people get through really stressful and drastic situations.”