Drogin began his work at "The Los Angeles Times" as a national correspondent based in New York City. He traveled to nearly every state and covered the 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns. He subsequently moved overseas as a foreign correspondent, serving for eight years, as bureau chief in Manila and Johannesburg. He reported on Nelson Mandela's election as president of South Africa, the genocide in Rwanda, the Gulf War, and other news from countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. He returned to Washington, in 1998, working as the Deputy Bureau Chief until retiring in November 2020.