Elliot C. Williams joins The 51st as a Senior Reporter

Elliot C. Williams has covered D.C.'s arts and culture for the better part of a decade, including as a staff writer at DCist and as WAMU’s arts and culture reporter. We're thrilled that he'll be continuing to cover the city's creative scene at The 51st, as well as writing explainers and news pieces that help make D.C. residents' lives better.

Elliot's work exemplifies the kinds of stories The 51st exists to tell: his coverage of a forgotten African American burial site hidden beneath a Georgetown street, his profile of D.C. rapper Noochie and his viral Front Porch series, and his story about Halim Flowers, who became an internationally recognized artist after decades in prison are just a handful of our favorites.

"I’m excited to cover the creative side of D.C. because it is still so dangerously under-covered — and I say 'dangerous' because of the constant threats to erase or forget D.C. culture," Elliot says. "And we can’t forget that Washingtonians — the people next to you at the grocery store or on the Metro — are behind that creativity."

Elliot joins The 51st from the National Press Club Journalism Institute, where he served as training manager and led professional development opportunities for journalists across the country.

We asked him a few questions about his decision to join The 51st, and the coverage readers can look forward to.

Why did you want to work at The 51st?

I joined DCist in 2019 because I believed in its goal of bringing interesting, well-reported stories to a hyperlocal audience, and I’m joining The 51st for much of the same reason. Since its inception, The 51st has been a constant — and successful — reminder that strong communities are built on relationships and open access to information.

In my interviews for this role, I described The 51st as "the unofficial neighborhood block captain" — the one who always knows who's running for local office, can tell you when and where to show up for civic engagement, and shares the scoop on your wacky neighbor with a backstory you simply have to hear. I joined The 51st to tell those stories and to become part of a newsroom led by the people who understand the publication best: its staff.

What stories are you most excited to dig into?

Every day, I learn about a new restaurant or bar, a new pop-up exhibit or underground theater performance, or a musician making waves without having to move to New York or L.A. I’m excited to write profiles of those people again. If you’re a local creative, keep an eye on your DMs because you’ll probably hear from me soon.

I also find that most of the Washington media world is (understandably) laser-focused on national politics. And yes, D.C. life will always be entangled with federal politics — just ask anyone who works at the Kennedy Center. But there is so much happening here that doesn’t involve the decisions of one man living on Pennsylvania Avenue. What happens on a community level is still just as — if not more — important to our day-to-day lives.

What else should readers know about you?

I grew up in the Philly suburbs and now live just outside Northeast D.C. in Prince George’s County with my wife, daughter, and an unlikely pair of rescues: a tiny orange tabby and a large black lab. In my free time, I can be found getting lost in a museum, playing basketball on courts across the area, or struggling to pick what to eat at Union Market.