Drama Queens - Work in Progress: Kristen Welker Part 2

Episode Date: February 6, 2026

Sophia's candid conversation continues with "Meet the Press" moderator Kristen Welker. The acclaimed journalist sets her objectivity aside and shares which guests tested her view of authority, vulnerability, courage, and restraint. Plus, Kristen reveals the surprising way she prepared for her high-stakes role in one of this country's most pivotal presidential debates.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hi, everyone. It's Sophia. Welcome to Work in Progress. Welcome back to Part 2 of Work in Progress with the in Imitable Kristen Welker. Let's continue. I wanted to ask you about some of your favorite conversations because, yes, I want to know all the details about, you know, journalistic standards and how the show works. And in the same way that you have these more personal moments on Meet the Moment, they really excite me.

And, you know, you brought it up when you mentioned your interview on that show with, or that segment, rather, with Olivia Munn. And I thought you guys did such a beautiful job having that conversation. And it touched me a lot, listening to you to, you know, discuss obviously her illness and how that shifted. what she thought her plans would be for her motherhood. You shared and have shared so, I think, beautifully and vulnerably about infertility and surrogacy. And, you know, it's been, I think, until recent years a very kind of, you know, brown bag, bottom shelf conversation, women go through this and then they're welcomed into groups, but no one was really talking about it in public.

And I watch sometimes when women do. There's so much support for the journey. And then I don't have to tell you, there's this horrible segment of commenters who just say the most awful things. I'm really curious, you know, it's such a personal thing. And you are also this composed and brilliant figurehead for so many of us.

And I don't know, you managed to be the anchor you are, but also to show us things that I didn't really feel like I'd ever seen before. How do you balance the kind of knowing you can shift a conversation, maybe feeling a responsibility as a reporter, and your own personal fears and the complexity of privacy as a public figure? Like, I just am fascinated by it. Well, first of all, thank you for those comments. You're going to make me cry. It's just so meaningful. You have no idea. I mean, look, infertility is incredibly isolating and lonely and...

And common. And common. One in six people experience infertility. And that's one of the reasons that I thought I have to speak out and share this journey. it also was about being honest with the audience. I thought, you know, at the time I was co-angering the weekend today show with Peter Alexander, and I thought, what am I going to say to people? I'm going away for a few months, and I had a child and not explained to them the journey that I went through to get there.

I mean, I struggled with infertility for years. I would leave my live shots at the White House, rush, to my appointments, rush back to work. Oftentimes would go to my appointments and get really tough news. My husband and I would like cry, wipe away the tears, go to work for the day, try to sweep it under the road. And the decision to work with a surrogate was challenging. It was not an overnight decision. This was a lot of conversation between me and my husband, our families, because we knew we wanted to be parents. And so we did decide to go that path.

And as I've always said, people choose many different roads, adoption, which is so beautiful. And I felt like this was the right journey for us. And to not share it would not be honest with the public. And the third reason, it may be the most important, I wanted my daughter to feel celebrated. I wanted her to feel like her journey to this earth, and I want her to feel, is just as normal and excited and something to be celebrated

as every other beautiful child who exists on this earth. And so I have shared with her, her journey, by the way. We talk about it, and she likes to talk about it. I mean, she's fascinated by it. and and I think that, but I have to tell you, Sophia, I was terrified. I was absolutely terrified. I did not know what the response was going to be.

And I did not know if people would be critical. And I have to tell you, overwhelmingly, overwhelmingly, we, my husband and I, after we shared our story, the response was, nothing but supportive and it was incredible supportive and also I couldn't believe how many people came forward women men to tell me they'd struggle with infertility and thank you for sharing this story and they were in various different stages of thinking about how to become parents or maybe in the case of some people who decided look we're actually not going to continue with our fertility journey and that's fine too.

But so many people reached out to say thank you because now we feel a little less alone. And so that has been so powerful and that's why the conversation with Olivia Munn I think was so important for bravery in speaking out

about her battle against breast cancer and wanting to share her story to save other lives and she has just by sharing her own story and it's so incredible. And then to talk about why she turned to surrogacy and be bravery in that. And as you say, it was something that was swept under the rug.

And I'm so inspired by the fact that more women, more people are speaking out about their journey with surrogacy and how it's helped them to become parents. Because it is a beautiful thing. We still have relationships with both of our beautiful, incredible surrogates who are angels here on Earth. We are just totally grateful for them. And I do think it's something to be celebrated, and that's why I wanted to speak out about it. Absolutely. I mean, what an incredible gift and what a special, just what a special connection and the way you can look at your family and have those conversations about you are so, so loved. Like, we worked so hard for you.

because you were supposed to be here. You know, it's very, very beautiful. And I really appreciate the leadership you've taken on that. Well, I appreciate that so much. I spoke to another mom who, before Margo, my daughter was born. And I said, you know, I'm so nervous about her actual birth. How am I going to feel? What's it going to be like?

Because this was something I always envisioned that I would do, obviously. Yeah. And this mom who I was talking to who would also welcome to her children with the help of a surrogate said, you will have a new understanding of gratitude the moment your daughter is born. That bond that you have is your surrogate will take on a whole new meaning. And again, the gratitude that you feel. And in the case of Margot's surrogate, the woman we worked with who's absolutely amazing, you know, going back to when she was in high school, one of her family members struggled with

infertility and it had kind of always been a dream of hers to become a story. And so to work with someone like that was just, it was such a gift. It was such an incredible gift. And I think it's those stories that sometimes don't get told. So we wanted to share that our sense of gratitude. Yeah. It's incredible. One of my best friends, her cousin, has been a surrogate. And I wanted to ask questions about it. And she said, you know, we had three kids. We knew we were done. She said, and I'm one of those women who has never felt better, happier, prettier, more alive, more energetic than when I'm pregnant. And I spent, she was talking about how she spent about a year after they had their last baby, really grieving that she would never be pregnant. with her husband. And somehow a story kind of, you know, came across her news feed and she was like,

wait a second. And they had a conversation and she said, the fact that some women don't get to have this breaks my heart. And I'm not ready to be done with it, but I know we're done having kids. And she was a surrogate for three more families. How amazing. Three more families. Wow. Three more families. And she said that if they didn't cut her off after three, she would have kept going. And I was like, you are the most incredible person. Like, what? And it was such a cool take to get, story to get, you know, and the gratitude and the relationships.

And it was really beautiful to get to know that story, you know, just by happenstance of having a best friend who was related to this person. It was cool. I absolutely love that. And I do think, and my hope is that the stories of surrogates are told more. It's an act of bravery. And it's just incredible. And again, we think of our two surrogates as angels on earth, truly. And we just feel incredibly blessed and fortunate.

And so I love that conversation with Olivia Munn. There are other conversations, though, I will tell you, this is a very different topic than I wonder if you're going to pick one of the ones I want to ask because it's definitely a left turn. No, you go, you go. I want to know what you're going to say. I think my top one, one of my top ones in the news category is President Zelensky. That was going to literally be my next one. I was going to say full reversal.

I need to know. Okay. So what you have to know about this. First of all, my executive producer and I were traveling to Munich. to conduct this interview. Yes. And we had a range of travel challenges along the way. One of them being that I had, after seven years of marriage,

just legally changed my name. So I could have the same last name as my kids. Yes. For whatever reason, that created all sorts of glitches with my travel documents. So we are about to board the plane to Munich And I give them my ticket And it's booked Under for whatever reason they swapped the name

And a big X comes up on the screen No Yes And they're like ma'am please come with me No you're expecting the green check and you get the red X No we're like no I have to get on the plane You don't understand I have an interview with President Zelensky.

Thank goodness they worked it out. But that was heart stopping. We get to Munich. And we're waiting, waiting. We're all set up for this interview. We're waiting. We're looking. We're like, oh, it's getting a little late.

They were supposed to do a security check. I'm like, gee, you know, what? This is all running a little bit behind schedule. But we weren't worried. But we were kind of curious. about like, what's the timing going to look like? And we get a call from President Zelensk's person. I'm so sorry, our meetings have all run late.

We're going to have to reschedule for tomorrow. We're like, no, no, no, no. We're on a flight back to D.C. tomorrow. The interview has to happen now. Yes. Oh, boy. So this is heart-stopping moment number two. Thankfully, thankfully, thankfully, and President Zelensky, to his credit,

had been in meetings all day that had run long. I mean, they had run this was a true and real statement. This was also a pivotal moment. It was a month into this second Trump administration, deep concerns about what would happen with U.S. funding to Ukraine. And so we reiterated all of those arguments. And to his credit, they said, okay, he's going to come into the interview. And he sat down. He wound up sitting with me for, I believe, the better part of an hour.

And here's the extraordinary thing that happened. we asked him, please, can you speak in English because this is such a pivotal moment. And I'd interviewed him twice before, and it had always been a mix of Ukrainian and English. First words out of his mouth were in English. And the crux of the interview, the majority of the interview he conducted in English, which was incredibly powerful. And from the perspective of the U.S. audience, I think helped people really understand his point. And one of the big points he made in that interview, I think, forcefully, and for the very first time, he said, Ukraine cannot survive without the United States

support militarily. And it was this very powerful moment and message. And so all of the hurdles were absolutely worth it for what felt like quite frankly an historic moment. And just sitting there with President Zelensky and to have him so powerfully speak in English. and convey this very strong message to the United States. It was really one of the unforgettable moments in my career. That's amazing. I mean, what an interview. And I have just been, as a journalism nerd and history nerd,

who doesn't do this for my profession, but pays attention, I have been so struck by this man whose life essentially took a left turn, Being the president of his country was not his original plan. Right. And he is leading a nation through one of the most trying times, fighting one of the world's most enormous and formidable authoritarian powers. And he just refuses to give up. And so his people will not give up.

And it feels to me very kismet that we have interviews like that, when that you did with him to look to in times like this in our own country. Well, I so appreciate that. I was going to ask, is it ever sort of surreal? You know, I think about you mentioning Venezuela earlier, and I think back to Fiona Hill's testimony in 2019 saying, look, Putin and Trump are talking, you take Ukraine, we'll take Venezuela.

To see that now at the end of 2025 and into 2026, are there moments as a journalist because you know all this stuff, you know? I know this stuff because I'm nuts, admittedly, and I'm like reading everything every day. But you know all of these things so much more than I would say, you know, the average news watcher. Do you ever think about, oh, maybe on the show I want to pull from this interview I did with Zelensky? I want to reference something historical to bring it back to what's happening this week. Do you feel like your mind is just a Rolodex of political facts? Because I feel like it has to be.

I try to build it to be a Rolodex. Yes, that's my goal. But 100%. That is, I think, one of the distinguishing features of Meet the Press and has always been the Rolodex, the library of interviews. use and as you say, that are historic and so meaningful. And so that, I mean, we read through hundreds of pages every single week, Sophia, to prepare for this one-hour program to make sure that we're not missing anything.

And we are always looking for that moment in time that we can reference, that we can bring back, that we can unearth, that we can say to a guest, this is what you said then, or maybe this person said this then, you know, what are the implications now? We are constantly putting this show together and on the air with a mind towards what has happened in the past and what our guests have said in the past.

I think it really is one of the things that makes meet the press and how we approach every Sunday unique. But I think it's important for people's broader understanding of these really complicated moments. Because as you say, it's important to have all of the context. And so we absolutely try to bring that every Sunday, but finding it, sometimes it's quite obvious, but sometimes we stumble upon these gems. And we say, oh, my goodness, this person made this comment 10 years ago.

We've got to use that as part of our framing for, you know, any given question or conversation. But certainly in the context of the Zelensky interview, I always think back to it. I always think back to his words then and how meaningful they are and how meaningful they continue to be. And by the way, I think back to my reporting back then, which was during the Biden administration when Ukraine was invaded. And I was talking to administration officials at the time and they said, this is going to be over in 24 hours. because the Russians are just going to completely outpower Ukraine. Think about what Ukraine has done to your point. It's extraordinary.

It's extraordinary. Their will to survive as a country. And it really is, I think, one of the defining moments. I do too. I do too. And now a word from our sponsors who make this show possible. Celebrate your pride with the station that says, Bold, vibrant and diverse as you are.

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There's another one I want to ask you about. Yes. to bring it home, but it is a, well, it is a political interview, but it gave such personal perspective. You did a bipartisan interview for my friends at home, it's one of my favorites, with Senator Raphael Warnock, who is a Democrat, and Senator James Langford, who is a Republican, on bridging the divides in our politics, on really how to do that hard work. And, you know, I understand that things exist on a case-by-case basis for everyone, myself included. But I do believe that unless we figure out how to remember that we really are just a giant neighborhood,

we're going to lose the experiment of our democracy, as you said before. How did that interview feel? How did you really get in the weeds of policy with two people who view a lot of things? things very differently and also make sure they were having really human conversations on a personal level with you. Well, I have to say that was one of my favorite conversations. I'm so glad you raised that. Thank you. It was so important then and is so important now and it really was the foundation of forming what is now our finding common ground segment. We're trying to have more of these conversations.

People respond to and appreciate these conversations. I cannot tell you the feedback that we got. For months, Sophia, I got emails. Please have another conversation like that. And we did it around this shared value that they have, their faith. The fact that these are two pastors, Senator Warnock, an active pastor,

And that they could speak about the different issues, whether it's immigration or the debate over guns in this country and find threads and areas where they agree. And their biggest area of agreement was we have to keep talking. We have to keep having these conversations. And it was so powerful. And just the two of them sitting there together, I think, was probably. part of what made it so powerful that people could see the power in that and the fact that that's really what Washington should be about. Yeah. People coming together across the aisle to bridge these divides. Yes, have very fierce debates. Yes. They're tough, tough issues that the country is facing,

but to find a way to push beyond those differences to find some areas of agreement. And I think that's what you really saw on display in that conversation. And again, the guiding principle to all of it was their shared faith. And I thought that made it an incredibly powerful conversation and one that still resonates. We want to have them back. We just had another bipartisan conversation with Senators Kane and Paul, Tim Kaine and Paul. And in that conversation, less faith-based, more focused on some of the issues that were at the forefront of that week, the War Powers Act, the debate over that, Venezuela, the path forward. But it's a segment that we're really dedicated to. And again, that conversation with Senators Warnock and Lankford was at the root of it. And both

senators have been frequent guests on the show in the wake of that. And just really grateful. because by the way, sitting down together in this climate is not necessarily an easy thing either. It opens them up to criticism. But they did it for the message that it sends, for their constituents to send that message. Yes, we are willing to do the tough thing, which is to disagree, but then to figure out a path forward because that's why they were elected. Yes. And that's a, that I think is a very big deal and a great reminder for people. people, this is their literal job. If you are an elected official, your job is to sit down with

people you disagree with. Yes. And, you know, some, some viewer or constituent at home might not like it, but that's why you're not elected. That's why I'm not elected. You know? And I think we have to remember that we don't get through anything by refusing to try to fix it. And I think we have to remember that we don't get through anything by refusing to try to fix the problem. Yeah. You know, there are certainly certain people, sometimes people will say, oh, well, if you're willing to sit down with someone on the other side,

would you sit down with, and they'll fill in the blank with something horrific? And I'm like, no, no. The other side is not fascism. That's a third thing. But I genuinely believe that, sitting down to interact with people is the way we solve these things. And honestly, an example I think a lot about, and I know as a history buff, you'll appreciate this. I think about the architecture

of the healing that was run in the wake of the Rwandan genocide and how it was done in that country, that entire initiative that took years was run by the women. And they said every single person, every victim will sit with a violence maker. And every single person will hear and they will heal and they will figure this out together. And it does really remind me of what's possible if we care more about the outcome of a nation than our personal upset in a moment. And so I'm like, good. I'm going to sit at home and yell at you to do your jobs better. but if you're elected, I expect you to do your job better. Go, go fix it.

And you're right. And I mean, what a powerful example you raised, but I do, I love that framing like the power of what's possible. And I think that's what these bipartisan conversations, this finding common ground segment that we've launched across all NBC platforms is really focused on that question, power of what is possible and what is so important against the backdrop of of this climate. It's so important. I have to ask about one last thing and then I promise we're almost done. No, I'm loving it. I think back to you moderating the final presidential debate of 2020 and the consensus on social media wasn't about either candidate. It was that you were the winner. And I loved that for you. I loved that for all of us. I just have to know, do you look at that stuff?

do you have a little moment in your office? Are you like cute and you just get back to work? Because I imagine you need a little bit of a release just from the adrenaline of that kind of high stakes moment and unpredictable participants. Do you let yourself like have a little fun when the cameras are off? Well, I felt immense relief that that was the takeaway. And I appreciate you're raising that.

I mean, that was the hardest assignment. I've ever had. Yeah. You were great. For that was in the middle of COVID. And by the way, that's when I really started to understand the power of mock debates. I helped Lester Holt prepare for moderating the debate he moderated in 2016 between President Trump and Hillary Clinton.

And then when I was asked to moderate that debate used the same exact framework, those mock debates. And because it was COVID in that final. week we were in Nashville often sitting outside at times by candlelight doing mock debates. Wow. And I should say I also started meditating to prepare for the enormity of the pressure that I would feel when I sat down. Wow. Which really helped me to center myself.

I mean, I had walked through when you do those debates, you kind of sit down and you have two minutes of silence just by yourself to collect yourself and your pen. I was like, okay, what are you going to do for two minutes? You've got to find your breath. You've got to center yourself. You've got to find calm in those moments. And I practiced it over and over and over again. And I almost put as much work into those two minutes as I did for the hour and a half debate, because in some ways, that starting point was the most important thing. that we started on a steady footing. And the enormity and the pressure.

And when I got through the debate, I stood up and I'll never forget, my legs started shaking. It was like I was holding all of this tension in my two legs. They literally started shaking. And I looked at my producer at the time, Rashida Jones, one of the people who helped me prepare,

came out and she said, you know, you crushed it. You did a great job. said, really, are you sure? And she said, no, no, you did. And that was when that move of relief started coming in. To your question, I don't linger on the kind of relief because every weekend I have another debate basically to prepare. Right back in the spin cycle. Right back in it. But it was such an incredible honor to be able to moderate that debate and an incredible experience and the team was incredible. And so, yes, I let myself.

enjoy it for a minute and then got back to the task at hand, which is what we do every Sunday. You know, everyone says, what's it like when you get off the set of Meet the Press? I'm like, I'm moderating Meet the Press again in another seven days. So we start thinking about what the next Meet the Press is going to look like. And as you say, the enormity and the significance of this moment and making sure that we're getting all of our interviews right for our audience. Of course. It's such a high pressure job in the first place And in a year like 2026, it's unprecedented.

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Hey, it's little more. This is Keshe. Find 2010's The Decade on the free IHeart Radio app. Preset the station, so it's always one tab away. I wonder for you, you know, because you do balance. God, I hate using that word with women, because men don't get asked about their balance. But ask me, please, because I think about it all the time. Yeah, but you do balance so many things, you know, the gravity of the entire political landscape

and the context of American history and global history, the immediacy of the moment, the nuance of shifting policy and also the reality that this is personal for people and that that comes with a slew of its own specifics and complications. And on top of it, you are not just a journalist, you know, a person that audiences can trust, you are your own person.

You are a wife, you are a mom. You have a sense of humor about things that many of us don't know about. We don't know about the inside jokes in your house or with you and your best friends. I don't know what your favorite cocktail is yet. I'm going to figure it out when we come on the show. But it's like, it's so many things. I'll tell you, Zavignon Blanc. Oh, my God, same.

Is it really? Incredibly dry, must be mineral. If it's sugary, I don't want it. That's right. Dry. I'm going to bring you a Greek white wine that I love. Oh, this is going to be fun. Oh, fantastic. Oh, fantastic. When you think about the whole sphere of your life, the answer could be personal. It could be professional. It could be neither, something totally unexpected. But I wonder right now for you what feels like your work in progress. It's a great question, Sophia. I think my work in progress is. trying to find that right mix of giving 150% to work and 150% to being a mom, which is always my top priority, which is not to take anything away from the enormity

and the seriousness with which I approach my work. I was laughing because last night, my son, who's only 18 months, John Zachary has decided that he wants to wake up at 3 a.m. And he's been waiting up for the past at 3 a.m. So I was hoping I would be coherent for this conversation. You're doing great. Thank you. Because it has been a long stretch.

And I still have to be there for him in the middle of the night when he wakes up. And I on my days off, try to the extent. that I can put the phone down, stay focused on the kids. There's just a snowstorm. We're dealing with this major breaking news story. So we went sledding. I did make a few calls because this is such an enormous story. But I wanted to make this a fun snowstorm for the kids.

And I wanted kids to feel like we were hunkered down as a family and having fun and cooking things. And I want them to be proud of me. and I want them to look back at this body of work when they're old enough to understand it and feel proud of it too. So I hold both things at once. And I think that that is my ongoing work in progress always. And it's a cliche, but it's true. It's a cliche because it's true because parents, working parents are juggling an immense amount all of the time when I step foot into the office, I've had a full day with my family already. My kids are up anywhere between, you know, 6 a.m. and 7 a.m.

So, yes. I've had a full day whenever I start my work day and get to do for that. It's a wonderful blessing. And I want to make sure my kids always feel like I am present with them. I don't always achieve that, but I always try to achieve. And at the same time when I'm at work, I have to make sure I'm getting it right for all the reasons that I have been discussing because the stakes have never been higher. Absolutely. But I think there's something really beautiful in the trying because, you know, in whatever way you become a parent or a bonus parent, you really do go, oh, my parents were literally just me.

Yeah. Like they're just two people trying to figure it out and do the best they can. I thought they knew everything. Oh! And suddenly you have so much more grace for them and suddenly you have so much more grace for yourself. But you said something, you know, both of the things, and I think about that.

You know, the work of my life is to constantly be able to hold more things at the same time, including oppositional truths that are both true about the world. And it made, it sort of triggered my actor brain when you said, you know, this part of parenting and this part of work, both, because we have this phrase in improv and comedy where it's yes and. Yes, and, exactly. And no matter what gets thrown at you, you go, yes, and, and you show up with something to

offer back. And I think about that, and I think about the both and that that our political landscape and our world requires. And there's some sweet spot between those two that I think for all working parents might be the key. I think it is the key. You hit the nail on the head. It is both end because they both have to exist and have to nurture both of them at the same time. Well, I'm just so happy for you. You're doing great, Mama.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so, thank you. Thank you for today. Thank you. This was just an incredible conversation, and I could keep talking to you all day. I'm so grateful for you for asking me. Thank you so much.

I'm so grateful that you joined us. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.