Matt Katz reports on air at WNYC about immigration, refugees, national security and hate. He covered New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie for more than five years, first for The Philadelphia Inquirer and then for WNYC and New Jersey Public Radio. He followed the governor through scandal and presidential candidacy and appeared weekly on WNYC Studios' Christie Tracker Podcast.
In 2015 Matt and a team from WNYC won a Peabody Award for their coverage of Christie and the Bridgegate scandal. The series -- Chris Christie, White House Ambitions and the Abuse of Power -- was WNYC's first Peabody for news coverage since 1944. In 2016, Matt's biography of Christie -- American Governor: Chris Christie's Bridge to Redemption -- was published by Simon & Schuster's Threshold Editions. Matt's experience covering Christie also shaped his 2016 TedX talk, Political Deceit in a Social Media Age.
Matt has written about politics for The Washington Post, The New York Times, The New Republic and POLITICO. Before covering the Statehouse in Trenton he spent time in Afghanistan, writing a series on reconstruction efforts for The Philadelphia Inquirer that won the Livingston Award for International Reporting for journalists under the age of 35. In 2009 his four-part investigation about Camden set the stage for an end to the state's takeover of city government. Prior to that, he was an award-winning reporter and syndicated dating columnist at The Courier-Post in New Jersey. He started his career covering local school board, zoning and council meetings for The Daily Record in New Jersey.
Matt has two young children, Sadie and Reuben, who listen to a lot of WNYC. Find him on Twitter @mattkatz00. Read more of Matt's latest reporting on Gothamist.
Matt Katz appears in the following:
Friday, March 05, 2021
The new commission in charge of figuring out the future of legalized weed in New Jersey is under criticism from some of the same advocates who backed the push for reform.
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
New Jersey's Attorney General issued new law enforcement guidelines one day after Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation legalizing marijuana in the state.
Monday, February 22, 2021
Gov. Murphy finally signed multiple pieces of legislation that officially legalize marijuana in the Garden State.
Friday, February 19, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
The Senate is set to vote on the latest attempt at a cleanup bill to address penalties for underage users on Monday.
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
The Trump name was officially vanquished Wednesday from the town that brought the former President Donald Trump so much fame, fortune and failure.
Thursday, February 11, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Legislation that would decriminalize marijuana and establish the regulatory structure for the state's marketplace remains unsigned by Gov. Phil Murphy.
Thursday, February 11, 2021
Legislation that would decriminalize marijuana and establish the regulatory structure for the state's marketplace remains unsigned by Gov. Phil Murphy.
Tuesday, February 09, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
After the latest instance of prisoner abuse, lawmakers want federal authorities to help run the long-troubled prison.
Wednesday, January 27, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Bergen County Jail's ICE detainees have gone on hunger strike, and 13 currently have COVID -- more than any other area facility.
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News /
Jake Offenhartz : Reporter, Gothamist
White supremacists, QAnon adherents, militiamen and more allegedly went south from New York and New Jersey to stage an insurrection.
Monday, January 25, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Bridget Kelly says she didn’t know the 2013 lane closures at the George Washington Bridge was a plot to get back at Chris Christie’s political opponent.
Thursday, January 21, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
No deportations (for now). Fewer ICE arrests. And, maybe, no more "aliens."
Tuesday, January 19, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Authorities say he discussed attacking the 9/11 memorial in New York -- and bombing American soldiers abroad.
Tuesday, January 19, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
The New Jersey Heritage Association is known for spouting anti-Semitism and racism on stickers and leaflets that anyone can download and post in their neighborhood.
Sunday, January 17, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Reports that armed MAGA rallies in Trenton and other state capitols across the nation on Sunday turned out to be false.
Wednesday, January 13, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) is alleging that the Trump Administration is protecting dozens of border control officers involved in secret, racist Facebook groups.
Friday, January 08, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Hunger strikers are transferred to solitary confinement with no working toilets.
Thursday, January 07, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Leonard Guthrie of Cape May was charged with unlawful entry of the Capitol building.
Tuesday, January 05, 2021
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Despite fear of retaliatory transfers, the hunger strikes continue at local ICE jails.
Sunday, December 27, 2020
By
Matt Katz : Reporter, WNYC News
Immigrant detainees in the U.S. are often illegally held in county jails by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. Activists in New York and New Jersey want ICE to release detainees now.