Jonathan Kaplan MPP 1996

A staff writer for The Hill, a non-partisan weekly newspaper covering Congress, Jonathan E. Kaplan, MPP'96 is a busy man, in his element amid daily deadlines and constant story ideas. But he didn't take an expected or direct path to get here, instead following a more circuitous route. Literally. It involved a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile bike ride and then a 26.2-mile marathon.

A self-described "political junkie" Kaplan tried a more traditional route when he first graduated from the Harris School. He worked at the think tank Progressive Policy Institute, and later for Rep. Ken Bentsen (D-Texas), but it wasn't until he happened upon journalism as a career path that he found his calling.

In 2000, he "dropped out of life" to compete in one of the world's best-known endurance events, the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Hawaii. Kaplan's first paid article was written for the Washington Post about his experience. The story led to more freelance assignments about endurance sports and professional cycling, and ultimately back to politics, but this time as a watchdog in the media. Along the way, he discovered he loved journalism for the same reasons he enjoyed endurance sports-a simple task that's part of a greater whole.

"There's nothing more simple than putting one arm in front of the other, or one foot in front of the other, and running, swimming or cycling," Kaplan explained. It's the same with journalism. "They tell you go write a story. Well, there's a beginning middle and end and you can see at the end of the day what you've done."

Kaplan says he writes about Capitol Hill much as he would sports. "The Hill is about covering deals and conflict and human nature," he said. "It's not about looking at factors that will influence behavior. It's about raw human interaction. At least, that's how I try to cover it."

At the same time he says he's learned journalism doesn't have to be adversarial. "It doesn't have to be us versus them, right versus wrong. In fact, two people can see the same things two different ways and both be right."

And Kaplan has seen this first hand, including during two visits to Iraq in 2003 and 2004. The first time he traveled with a Hill colleague and a Kurdish friend to Baghdad and the northern part of the country. The day after Christmas 2003, they drove from Amman, Jordan to Baghdad and talked to families, merchants, and everyday people.

"It was the stupidest and bravest thing I've ever done," he said.

A year later, he did it again embedded with the U.S. Army. "It was really fascinating, but it was a much different trip. The first time I saw Iraq through the eyes of Iraqis, or at least Kurds. This time it was all through the American military."

The Joliet native took a trip home to Illinois to swim a September 5K race in Lake Michigan but after that, it was back to D.C. to cover the November mid-term elections, when it was "the election all day, all of the time." It's easy to see that's just how he likes it.