Shelly Tan

Washington, D.C.

Graphics reporter specializing in design, illustrations and pop culture

Education: Northwestern University, BS in Journalism

Shelly Tan is a graphics reporter and illustrator specializing in design and illustrative storytelling. She joined the Washington Post in 2014, initially as a member of the digital story design team, which focused on creating new templates and experiences for stories. She has worked primarily on the pop culture beat since 2017. Prior to joining the Washington Post, she worked as an intern with NPR's Visuals team. She enjoys experimenting with ways to combine her fine arts background with her digital design skills.
Latest from Shelly Tan

    What key players at Fox News said about the network and its viewers

    The Fox News lawsuit has given the public a rare look inside the powerful media company — including what top figures thought of their own network and its viewers.

    April 24, 2023

      Satellite images show destruction from tornadoes in Rolling Fork, Miss.

      Before-and-after satellite images show the devastation from tornadoes in Rolling Fork, Miss., that reduced buildings to rubble and collapsed homes late Friday.

      March 26, 2023

      How Western combat vehicles bound for Ukraine could change the war

      The infusion of advanced vehicles, including Bradleys and Strykers, could "provide Ukrainians with a big tactical advantage" in the push to retake territory.

      January 20, 2023

        AI can now create images out of thin air. See how it works.

        AI image generators like DALL-E, Lensa and stable diffusion create pictures and photos by interpreting and pairing text and images.

        December 16, 2022

          Craving brains and hangry: Zombie behavior demystified by scientists

          Why don't zombies eat each other? How hard would it be to claw out of a grave? How long can you live on brain? Scientific answers to zombie-related questions.

          October 25, 2022

          Understanding the symbolism in the queen’s funeral processions

          Scepter, orb, crown -- what does it all mean?

          September 15, 2022

            A quiz about your lousy chances of winning Mega Millions

            The Mega Millions jackpot is over $1 billion, and each ticket’s odds of winning Friday’s drawing are 1 in 302.6 million. How bad are those odds?

            July 28, 2022

              Quiz: Do you know the sweaty truth about these common fitness myths?

              Many things we've been told about exercise are just wrong. See if you can identify the tidbits of truth in this interactive quiz about exercise myths.

              May 18, 2022

                What the Supreme Court justices have said about abortion and Roe v. Wade

                Here's what we know about where each justice stands on the issue of abortion. A leaked document shows a majority of the Supreme Court is ready to strike down Roe v. Wade, the 1973 establishing a nationwide right to abortion.

                May 3, 2022

                  Russians are Hollywood’s go-to film villains — that’s unlikely to change

                  From the Cold War to present day, Soviets or Russians have continued to be featured prominently as bad guys in Hollywood films. The Russia-Ukraine conflict signals that this easy stereotype isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

                  April 22, 2022