We are thrilled to announce that Benjamin Oreskes, most recently of The Los Angeles Times, will be joining The New York Times to become a statehouse correspondent in Albany, N.Y.

For Ben, this is a coming home of sorts, in more ways than one. He's a native Upper West Sider, but also has Albany DNA: A decade ago, he was an intern for The Times Union in the capital, where he covered the campaign of a lieutenant governor hopeful named Kathy Hochul.

He then spent time covering foreign policy at Politico before joining The L.A. Times in 2017, where he wrote the Essential California newsletter, and covered city government in Los Angeles, the mayor's race in L.A., homelessness and the current Senate race.

Ben's coverage of homelessness in California earned him the Los Angeles Press Club's print journalist of the year award in 2021; his deep reporting of the L.A. City Council helped lead him and other L.A. Times reporters to the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in breaking news.

Soumya Karlamangla, a San Francisco-based correspondent for our National desk who worked with Ben at The L.A. Times, noted how he seemed to be "part of the coverage of nearly every big story at The Los Angeles Times in recent years." She singled out his reporting on the homelessness crisis, which she said showcased his ability to explain complicated policy topics, as well as the "humanity he brought to the issue through tireless on-the-ground reporting."

Ben is a graduate of Northwestern University.

Please join us in welcoming Ben.