She was US Political Correspondent in Washington, D.C. between 2009 and 2013, and was previously Middle East correspondent in Beirut and Tehran, and Korea Correspondent in Seoul. She was Tokyo bureau chief for "The Washington Post" from 2014 to 2018, and became the Beijing bureau chief. Fifield has reported from more than 20 countries, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya and North Korea. Over 20 years she covered the first nuclear test by North Korea in 2006, the disputed Iranian presidential election of 2009, and the 2012 US presidential election.