Jenna Bush Hager Becomes Member of the Press

By Stephen M. Silverman

Sunday August 30, 2009 04:00 PM EDT

Jenna Bush Hager

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

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Though her father, former President George W. Bush, enjoyed an often-testy relationship with the press, his daughter, Jenna Bush Hager, is about to join the Fourth Estate – by becoming a special correspondent to NBC's Today show, the program's executive producer, Jim Bell, tells the Associated Press.

"It wasn't something I'd always dreamed to do," said Hager, 27, a two-time author and teacher in Baltimore. "But I think one of the most important things in life is to be open-minded and to be open-minded for change."

While keeping her day job in Baltimore, Hager, who was approached by Bell about the TV job, will be contributing stories about once a month to the top-rated network morning show. Among the topics she might cover, according to the AP, is education.

"I think she can handle it," said Bell. "I think she knows something about pressure and being under some scrutiny. When she came here for a handful of appearances [to promote her books], she knocked it out of the park."

Hager's behind-the-mic debut on Today is expected to take place in September.