Women’s History Month: MCM Spotlights Former News Anchor and Politician Kathleen Matthews

In honor of Women’s History Month, MCM is recognizing some of Montgomery County’s most notable women. Women who have driven change, fought for equality and provided representation for the many diverse parts of our community.

Kathleen Matthews is a former local news anchor, executive officer, and chairwoman of Maryland’s Democratic Party.

Born in the San Francisco Bay area, Matthews graduated from Stanford University in 1975 before moving to the DC area where she joined WJLA-TV as a production assistant. She worked her way up to the level of producer, and soon she was on camera, first as a reporter, and later as an anchor for the 5, 6, and 11 p.m. broadcasts. She also hosted the shows Working Women and Capital Sunday towards the end of her news career.

After working at WJLA for 25 years, Matthews retired to pursue public relations. She took a job as the Chief Communications and Public Affairs Officer for Marriott International in 2006, where she worked until 2015.

Matthews then decided to run for office, and she entered the race to be Maryland’s 8^th Congressional District Representative to Congress. Though she did not win, this gave her the opportunity to join Maryland’s Democratic Party, where she would become chair in 2017, first as interim before being elected to the position formally. She held this position until December of 2018.

After a long career in different fields, Matthews has accumulated several accolades, including 9 local Emmys, and an Edward R. Murrow award, an Associated Press award, a George Foster Peabody, a Scrips-Howard, an Ohio State and Gracie Allen awards.

She has also sat on several organization boards, including the Catholic Charities of Washington, DC and Maryland, the Black Student Fund, Suited for Change, and former President Barack Obama’s Travel and Tourism Advisory Board as Vice Chair.

She currently lives in Chevy Chase with her husband, Chris Matthews, who hosts Hardball with Chris Matthews on MSNBC.

About Sam Merrill

Intern at Montgomery Community Media, senior broadcast journalism major at the University of Maryland.

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