Frank Main is a Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter from

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois.

Early life

Main was born in Glen Ridge,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, in 1964. He grew up in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

, and graduated from

Bishop Kelley High School Bishop Kelley High School is an American Lasallian Catholic high school with 905 students, grades 9 to 12, located at 41st and Hudson Avenue, in the center of the Tulsa metropolitan area (in the Midtown area), on a campus spanning just over 47 ...

in 1982. He graduated from

Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...

and earned a master's degree from the

Medill School of Journalism The Medill School of Journalism (branded as Northwestern Medill; formally the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications) is the journalism school of Northwestern University. It offers both undergraduate and graduat ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

Career

Main writes for the

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

, focusing on

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

and investigative stories. He began his career with The Tulsa World in 1987. He later worked for the Baton Rouge State-Times, the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate, and The Kentucky Post. He has reported from conflict zones in the Persian Gulf, Bosnia and Colombia. He covered the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks and

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

. Main has been an adjunct professor at Loyola University Chicago, teaching media law. He was the host of the first season of the award-winning podcast ' Motive' produced by WBEZ Chicago and the Chicago Sun-Times in 2019.

Awards and recognition

Main won the 2011

Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting The Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting is awarded to an example of "significant issues of local or statewide concern, demonstrating originality and community connection". This Pulitzer Prize was first awarded in 1948. Like most Pulitzers the winn ...

with Mark Konkol and John Kim for articles documenting violence in Chicago neighborhoods and the culture of silence that allows it to continue. The entry included two series that examined the same issue: how many assault and murder cases in Chicago go unsolved because victims, witnesses and neighbors refuse to cooperate with police. Main spent four months shadowing homicide detectives as they tried to solve the gang-related murder of a teenager only to be stymied by a "no-snitch" culture. The series showed "originality and community expertise," the judges said. In 2017, Main won the APME national storytelling award for 'Life on a Ledge,' which detailed a suicide he witnessed in Chicago. The piece explored the life, mental illness and death of Kendra Smith. In 2021, Main was a health journalism fellow at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

Personal life

Main shuttles between Chicago and Michigan with his wife, Alice.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Main, Frank American male writers Living people People from Glen Ellyn, Illinois People from Glen Ridge, New Jersey Emory University alumni Medill School of Journalism alumni Chicago Sun-Times people 1964 births Writers from Essex County, New Jersey