As the Washington Post ombudsman, Patrick Pexton represents readers who have concerns or complaints on topics including accuracy, fairness, ethics and the newsgathering process. He also serves as The Post’s internal critic and strives to promote public understanding of the newspaper, its Web site and journalism more generally. He operates under a contract with The Post that guarantees him independence. Pexton has been a reporter and editor for 28 years. He came to The Post from National Journal, where he was deputy editor, the No. 2 job at the nonpartisan weekly magazine about politics and government. Before National Journal, Pexton worked for the Army Times Publishing Co., where he was an editor, chief Pentagon correspondent and an investigative reporter. He played a key role in uncovering two national stories about the U.S. Navy: the Tailhook sexual harassment scandal and the widespread cheating by midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy. At the beginning of his career, Pexton worked at the Shoreline Times newspapers in Southern Connecticut and the Journal newspapers in the Washington suburbs. A Los Angeles native, Pexton graduated from Claremont McKenna College and earned a master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He can be reached at 202.334.7582 or ombudsman@washpost.com.