Clayson was born April 25, 1967, and spent most of her childhood in Sacramento, California. She played with the Sacramento Youth Symphony and is an accomplished violinist.

She graduated from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, in 1990 with a degree in journalism.

Clayson began her career at KSL-TV in Salt Lake City, Utah (1990—1996). While at KSL, she traveled to China to write and produce a series of stories about American doctors assisting Chinese children with disabilities. Her work there earned a regional Emmy. She also received the Radio and Television News Directors of America’s Edward R. Murrow Award while at KSL.

In 1996, Jane Clayson moved to Los Angeles, California, where she worked as a correspondent for Good Morning America, World News Tonight, and other ABC News broadcasts. Her work included coverage of Senator Bob Dole’s 1996 Presidential campaign, the OJ Simpson civil trial, and NATO’s strikes against Kosovo and the resulting refugee crisis in Macedonia.

In 1999, CBS News launched “Operation Glass Slipper,” the widely publicized search for Bryant Gumbel’s co-host on The Early Show. On November 1, 1999, Clayson was chosen, and joined Gumbel for the show’s first broadcast. From 1999 to 2002 she anchored The Early Show through the new Millennium, the inauguration of President George W. Bush, and the attacks on September 11, 2001.

In 2002, Jane Clayson became a correspondent for CBS News. She regularly reported for “Eye on America” segments and contributed to both 48 Hours and The CBS Evening News.

In September 2003, Clayson married Mark Johnson, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and Harvard Business School. She left CBS three months later (December 2003) to join her husband in Boston, where he is president and cofounder of the management consulting firm, Innosight.

The couple has two young children.

She is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Clayson occasionally substitutes for host Tom Ashbrook on the public radio program On Point, and has produced specials for the Discovery Channel. She also hosted BYU TV's coverage of the funeral for LDS President Gordon B. Hinckley on February 2, 2008.

Her first book, I Am a Mother! was released in March 2007 and chronicles her decision to leave the network news business to have a family. She regularly speaks on the topic at events across the United States.