Jacob Paul Tapper (born March 12, 1969) is an American journalist and author. As of 2018, Tapper is the Chief Washington Correspondent for CNN, weekday television news show The Lead with Jake Tapper, and Sunday morning affairs program State of the Union. Prior to joining CNN, Tapper worked for ABC News. The White House Correspondents' Association honored his work as Senior White House Correspondent with ABC News with three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards for broadcast journalism.Tapper contributed to the coverage of the inauguration of President Obama that earned an Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Coverage of a Current News Story. Tapper was part of a team that was awarded an Edward R. Murrow award for Video: Breaking News for "Target bin Laden: The Death of Public Enemy #1." His book The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor debuted at number 10 in November 2012 on The New York Times Bestseller list for hardback non-fiction. Tapper's book and his reporting on the veterans and troops were cited when the Congressional Medal of Honor Society awarded him the "Tex" McCrary Award for Excellence in Journalism.The Republican primary debate Tapper moderated in September 2015 drew more than 23 million viewers, making it the most-watched program in the history of CNN and the second-most watched primary debate ever. He also moderated the Republican presidential debate in Miami on March 10, 2016, which drew almost 12 million viewers and, according to Variety, "garnered acclaim for its substance".