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Jessica Estepa on Muck Rack

Jessica Estepa

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(She/Her)
  • Campaign Editor, CNN
Washington, D.C.
As seen in: CNN, CNN International, CNN Politics, MMA Junkie Radio, USA Today, Yahoo Canada, Yahoo News, Yahoo News Malaysia, Aol, CNBC, National Geographic and
Covers:  Politics, breaking news
Insights team lead at @BBGIndustry. Probably singing, knitting or stress baking. Home means NV. Alum: @cnn @usatoday @natgeo @eenewsupdates @rollcall @RSJNevada
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'Blackfish' casts long shadow as aquarium weighs retirement for dolphins

'Blackfish' casts long shadow as aquarium weighs retirement for dolphins

www.eenews.net — BALTIMORE -- Ghosts of the National Aquarium's dolphin show live on two years after its shutdown. The amphitheater -- now called the Dolphin Discovery exhibit -- still has seats marked "splash zone," posters of performing dolphins and large video screens that were used to rev up the crowd for the entrance of the performing animals. Aquarium visitors often ask staffers when the next show will start. The answer: never. The eight bottlenose dolphins that entertained several times a day now enjoy a life of leisure, interacting with their handlers in what used to be the center ring of a marine circus.
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Beluga fight pits aquarium against NOAA

Beluga fight pits aquarium against NOAA

www.eenews.net — ATLANTA -- A 2-foot-thick glass panel separates Beethoven and Maris from their admirers. The pair swim back and forth in their tank, every once in a while pausing in front of the crowd of about 30 people who have stopped to take in the sight of them. Some children point at the creatures and whisper to their parents, while other people ask questions, wondering where they originally came from and what they eat for dinner. It's no wonder. Beethoven and Maris are two of only 31 beluga whales currently living in captivity in the United States.
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'Deadliest Catch' crabbers stuck on land as season begins

'Deadliest Catch' crabbers stuck on land as season begins

www.eenews.net — In Jake Jacobsen's more than four decades in the Bering Sea crabbing business, the season has always started on time. But this year it will be delayed due to the government shutdown, potentially costing fishermen -- including some featured on the Discovery Channel reality TV show "Deadliest Catch" -- tens of millions of dollars.
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NPS, advocates on mission to undo 'troubling' lack of ethnic-minority park visitors

NPS, advocates on mission to undo 'troubling' lack of ethnic-minority park visitors

www.eenews.net — A chance encounter in a Belize bar led Audrey and Frank Peterman to embark on a life-changing cross-country adventure in 1995. Along the way, something unexpected happened: They fell in love -- with national parks.
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Invasive species: 'I don't think I'm afraid of snakes anymore' -- 02/08/2013 -- www.eenews.net

Invasive species: 'I don't think I'm afraid of snakes anymore' -- 02/08/2013 -- www.eenews.net

eenews.net — HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Luck was on Tom Rahill's side last weekend as he loaded up his canoe in preparation for the day's hunt. A cold front had passed over the south Florida Everglades a day earlier, bringing rain and cool temperatures. And as a hunter of Burmese pythons, he suspected the snakes would be basking in the sun, easy to find. "We're gonna catch a bunch of snakes. That's the mission," his hunting partner, 30-year-old Jorge Martinez, said. But that simple goal does not translate into easy practice, even for Rahill, a 55-year-old Broward County resident who has been roaming the Everglades since 1975 and catching pythons since they started appearing in the region.
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Public lands: Alaska, Ohio lawmakers face off in McKinley moniker dispute -- 10/10/2012 -- www.ee...

Public lands: Alaska, Ohio lawmakers face off in McKinley moniker dispute -- 10/10/2012 -- www.ee...

eenews.net — One of the longest-standing battles on Capitol Hill hasn't been over spending or regulation. It's been over the name of North America's highest peak. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) are the current lawmakers at odds over the name of Mount McKinley, the Alaska mountain that is the tallest in North America. Murkowski wants to see the mountain renamed Denali, the Alaska Native word for the peak. Ryan, on the other hand, would prefer it to remain named after the nation's 25th president, William McKinley, who lived most of his life in Ohio and who likely never visited Alaska.
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Sean Duffy Helps Return Veteran's Keepsake : Roll Call Around the Hill

Sean Duffy Helps Return Veteran's Keepsake : Roll Call Around the Hill

Roll Call — After World War II ended, Ray Plenge didn't tell many stories. But those who were close to him knew this one. It was 1945 and the Germans were on the retreat. Cpl. Plenge, then in his early 20s, was traveling through northern Italy with his unit when he came across a howitzer shell casing.
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'It's Like Falling in Love' : Roll Call Around the Hill

'It's Like Falling in Love' : Roll Call Around the Hill

Roll Call — Michael McElroy stood alone on the wooden floor. As the light shone through the windows in Eastern Market's North Hall, he took one step. His arms raised. A moment later, he started to dance the lead of the Argentine tango. A few people sat in chairs around the room, watching as he glided across the dance floor. McElroy knew these steps by heart. And all the while, no music played.
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D.C. Blockbusters: Victims of Changing Times : Roll Call Around the Hill

D.C. Blockbusters: Victims of Changing Times : Roll Call Around the Hill

Roll Call — A couple walked along Barracks Row on their way to dinner. They glanced at the store on their right. A few people could be seen through the windows, browsing merchandise on the shelves. "I can't believe Blockbuster is hanging on," the man said. "Barely," the woman replied. "Actually, look at those empty shelves. They may be closing down." And, indeed, it was.
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At historic black churches, freedom rings on

At historic black churches, freedom rings on

USA Today — Down in Williamsburg, Va., a bell rests behind the First Baptist Church. It's been decades since churchgoers and passersby have heard it peal. Come February, it will ring once more. "The bell has not rung since the days of segregation," said the Rev. Reginald Davis, who has led the congregation at First Baptist since 2004. The restoration of the bell, which hasn't rung since the 1950s, and the project to ring it every day in February, known as "Let Freedom Ring," comes as the First Baptist Church prepares to celebrate the 240th anniversary of its founding by slaves.
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As congressional efforts stall, N.M. locals take wilderness protection into their own hands

As congressional efforts stall, N.M. locals take wilderness protection into their own hands

E&E Publishing — With a 6-0 vote, the consensus among the city councilors of Las Cruces, N.M., was clear: Make the surrounding public lands into a national monument.
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For the Record's week in review: Ten Campaign Commandments

For the Record's week in review: Ten Campaign Commandments

USA Today — Happy Saturday, For the Record peeps! Bernie Sanders took some time out from his busy schedule to watch "Hamilton" last night, so we're taking some time out from our not-as-busy schedule to create the Ten Campaign Commandments* for you current/future politicians out there. After all, there's reckoning to be reckoned.
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