“Out There” is a must-read for anyone interested in state politics. It will appear as a regular feature on Stateline.org, the only nonpartisan, independent Web site devoted to state policy and politics in all 50 states. Stateline.org is a project of the Pew Research Center.

Jacobson is editor of CongressNow, a new online publication covering legislation and policy in Congress that is affiliated with Roll Call newspaper in Washington, D.C.  His “Out There” column, which is focused on political trends in the states, was featured in Roll Call from 2004 to 2006.

Before the launch of CongressNow, Jacobson was deputy editor at Roll Call. Before that, he was a staff correspondent and associate editor at National Journal. He also was a contributing writer to The Almanac of American Politics and did political handicapping of state legislatures for both The Rothenberg Political Report and The Cook Political Report. His “Out There” column won last year’s top award for commentary/analysis from Capitolbeat, the Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors. The column won second place in the same category in 2007.

Stateline.org is the premier online source for information on state policy and politics in all 50 states.  Staffed by professional journalists, Stateline.org features original stories, interactive graphics and research as well a daily news roundup and daily and weekly news alerts. It also publishes a yearly State of the States report.

Stateline.org is an independent project of the Pew Research Center and is based in Washington, D.C. Check out www.stateline.org for more.