Speakers Profile - Jennifer Hewett










Travels From:
Sydney

Fee Range: C


Jennifer began her career in 1976 as a cadet journalist with WA Newspapers in Perth. After completing a master's degree in Journalism at New York's Columbia University Journalism School, where she was awarded best international journalism student, she joined The Sydney Morning Herald in the Canberra press gallery.

Between 1983 and 1986 Jennifer was the New York and then Washington for The Sydney Morning Herald, before returning home join The Australian Financial Review as a political and business feature writer. In 1996 she returned to Washington for another three-year stint as correspondent for the Herald before returning to take up a position as political and business feature writer.

Jennifer rejoined the AFR in 2003 as a senior writer before joining The Australian in April 2007 as National Affairs Correspondent. She says: "As a business journalist, I try to write in a way that avoids jargon to reveal the extraordinary dramas occurring in the corporate world and to explain the roles played by key individuals. My aim is to make these stories just as fascinating and clear to those who don't normally follow the details of the business pages as they are to those who are closely involved. In many of the really major stories, such as Canberra's attitude to Chinese investment in resources, this also involves covering the impact of politics on business. That requires a deep understanding of how Canberra operates, a skill that is still unusual for most business journalists. I write in a variety of formats, ranging from feature articles to short sharp comment pieces."