About Me

Claudia Vargas is an investigative reporter at WCAU-NBC10 in Philadelphia. 

She was previously a staff writer at The Philadelphia Inquirer. In her 10 years at the Inquirer, she reported on government and politics in Philadelphia and Camden, NJ, shining light on the characters and bureaucracies that run those cities as well as the people affected by their decisions. She was most recently a quick-strike investigative reporter, churning out her own investigations within a few weeks but also putting her investigative skills to use during big breaking news and helping out with team coverage. She spent several years in the Inquirer’s City Hall bureau chasing staff and corresponding mayors in both the Nutter and Kenney administrations, as well as covering the 2015 mayoral race and various local and state races in between. She also covered the 2016 Democratic National Convention and uncovered its infamous $1 million bonuses-- which eventually led to a change in state grant policies. As the newspaper's accountability reporter, she used data and open records to dig deeper into local, state and federal agencies affecting everyday Philadelphians from the two-year delays for disability benefit applicants to the pension-padding practice of city workers that could have a longterm effect on taxpayers.

Prior to The Inquirer, Claudia was a public safety reporter for the Democrat & Chronicle in Rochester, NY covering crime and mayhem. 

A native Spanish speaker, Claudia was born in Miami and lived in Puerto Rico and Colombia during much of her youth. She spent her middle and high school years in Miami before leaving the Floridian palm trees for "Happy Valley" snow at Penn State University. Starting her freshman year at Penn State, she joined the staff of the Daily Collegian, the student-run independent newspaper on campus, and developed her passion for journalism over the next four years on staff.  Claudia spent a semester in Paris studying at Université de Paris- Sorbonne and freelancing for USA Today. She graduated from Penn State with degrees in journalism and international studies. 

Claudia is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the Investigative Reporters and Editors. She and her husband live in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood.