Jaweed Kaleem is a national correspondent at the Los Angeles Times. Based in L.A. with a focus on issues outside of California, he has traveled to dozens of states to cover news and deeply reported features on the complexity of the American experience. His articles frequently explore race, religion, politics, social debates and polarized society.
Kaleem was formerly based in London, where he was a lead news writer on Russia’s war on Ukraine, the death of Queen Elizabeth II and political crisis in the United Kingdom. In Europe, he launched The Times’ award-winning Global California initiative with coverage of American migrants in Portugal, Hollywood in the Baltics and the Nordic quest to win over U.S. video gaming.
Kaleem’s dispatches from the U.S. include a road trip from California to Oklahoma to tell the story of Sikh truckers on the “Punjabi American highway,” a year-long investigation into how COVID-19 devastated refugees working in one of the nation’s largest pork factories in Sioux Falls, S.D., and narratives exploring race, the 2020 election and the pandemic across America.
His work has received first-place citations from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Society for Features Journalism, the Asian American Journalists Assn., the South Asian Journalists Assn., the National Headliner Awards, the American Academy of Religion, the Excellence in Financial Journalism Awards and the L.A. Press Club’s Southern California Journalism Awards.
Before joining The Times, Kaleem was a religion reporter and editor at HuffPost and a reporter at the Miami Herald, where he was a member of a Pulitzer Prize finalist team recognized for coverage of Haiti. A longtime fan of the religion beat, he is a former vice president of the Religion News Assn. and the Religion News Foundation and was a fellow in religion reporting at the East-West Center and the International Center for Journalists. Raised by Pakistani immigrants, he attended Emerson College in Boston and grew up in Northern Virginia.
Latest From This Author
Nearly 100 people, including students, were arrested at a peaceful protest at USC. Other college campuses across California have seen an increase in protests related to the Israel-Hamas war.
April 25, 2024
After tensions led USC to drop its valedictorian and keynote speaker from its main commencement ceremony, the school canceled its largest graduation event.
April 25, 2024
LAPD officers in riot gear arrested 93 people on trespassing charges as they cleared an encampment at the center of the USC campus that formed in protest against the Israel-Hamas war.
April 24, 2024
Encampments and protests took place at UC Berkeley and Cal Poly Humboldt, and plans were shaping up for more pro-Palestinian protests at California colleges and universities.
April 24, 2024
After its decision to cancel valedictorian Asna Tabassum’s speech, USC has called off other commencement appearances over security concerns.
April 19, 2024
USC students, faculty and pro-Palestinian activists gathered on campus Thursday to push back against what they called ‘institutional silencing’ of valedictorian Asna Tabassum.
April 18, 2024
On Wednesday, a smattering of protesters gathered by the landmark Tommy Trojan statue, some calling on USC President Carol Folt to reverse course as arguments broke out between those on opposing sides.
April 18, 2024
Asna Tabassum was selected as USC valedictorian and offered a slot to speak at graduation. The university canceled her speech after pro-Israel groups criticized her Instagram.
April 16, 2024
USC cites safety reasons in canceling the upcoming graduation speech of pro-Palestinian valedictorian from speaking onstage at her ceremony.
April 15, 2024
Enikia Ford Morthel, the superintendent of Berkeley Unified School District, will testify in May in front of a congressional committee on charges of antisemitism in her schools.
April 15, 2024