Dan Eggen, Longtime Washington Post Editor Who Helped Shape Politics Coverage, Dies at 60

Dan Eggen, a longtime Washington Post reporter and editor who helped shaped its politics coverage, died in his Washington-based home Tuesday. He was 60 years old.

The Washington Post shared the loss of their former staffer Tuesday evening, noting Eggen’s death was confirmed by his former wife, Stephanie Armour. Though no cause of death was immediately shared, the outlet noted that police officials told Eggen’s family that no foul play or violence was suspected. An autopsy is currently pending.

Eggen, who worked on three Pulitzer Prize-winning projects for the Post and guided its coverage of the White House and other political beats, was remembered as “a sharp editor with a keen story sense” by the paper’s executive editor Matt Murray.

“Dan was involved in hiring, editing and mentoring dozens of politics writers across the years,” he added. “[His] news muscle and instincts were integral to our coverage.”

Politics reporter Meryl Kornfield expressed a similar sentiment, praising Eggen for adding “a nuance of understanding to every story.” Per Kornfield, Eggen “saw the bigger picture” and often helped other journalists he worked with understand why certain stories mattered.

Born in Iowa City on Feb. 1, 1966, Eggen was adopted at birth and raised in La Crescent, Minnesota by a Lutheran minister and a homemaker. He later attended the University of Minnesota, where he served as the editor-in-chief of the school’s paper, The Minnesota Daily.

While Eggen initially studied engineering at the university, he later pivoted to political science and received his bachelor’s degree in 1988. From there, Eggen worked at the Des Moines Register before moving over to The Post in 1997, where he joined the Metro staff.

During his time at The Post, Eggen became an influential editor on the politics desk, serving a variety of roles, including White House editor, senior politics editor and political enterprise editor, among other titles.

Eggen was among hundreds of Post journalists laid off back in February. Though, per the outlet, he had recently landed a new position at NOTUS, which he had yet to start.

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