Claudia's story

Claudia Vargas is an award-winning bilingual investigative reporter based in Philadelphia. Known for holding government and powerful institutions accountable, her reporting has led to changes in local, state, and federal policies.

As an independent journalist, she produces original written and visual stories that provide deeper context to issues impacting our region. Prior to working independently, Claudia worked at Philadelphia's NBC10 and Telemundo62, where she exposed inequities in police recruitment, uncovered discrepancies in line-of-duty death benefits, and revealed abuse within the city's subsidized workforce housing program. Her reporting earned multiple Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards and Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.

Claudia is also an accomplished documentary storyteller. She has reported, written, and produced five original true-crime documentaries— Who Killed Barbara Jean?, Boy in the Box: Naming America’s Unknown Child, Somebody Knows Something: The Disappearance of Dulce, Alguien Sabe Algo: La Desaparicion de Dulce Maria, and Finding Carlesha.

Before transitioning to television news, Claudia spent a decade at The Philadelphia Inquirer. She rose through the reporting ranks -- from South Jersey obituary writer to the newspaper’s prestigious Investigations Team. During her time at the Inquirer, she covered government and politics across Camden and Philadelphia-- with a focus on accountability. Her reporting delved into eminent domain, pension spiking, a missing commissioner, disability benefits delays, and political convention committee bonuses. Often times, Claudia's stories led to change and improvements in the systems she reported.  

Claudia began her career as a public safety reporter at the Democrat & Chronicle in Rochester, New York.

A native Spanish speaker and conversational in French, Claudia connects with diverse communities and has brought immigrants' stories to life that may have otherwise gone untold.  She was born in Miami and spent part of her childhood in Puerto Rico and Colombia. Claudia is a graduate of Penn State University and a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors. When she’s not reporting, you can find her tending to her garden.