Frank Main is a Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, Illinois.

Early life

Main was born in Glen Ridge,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

, in 1964. He grew up in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region wit ...

, 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 a ...

in 1982. He graduated from

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

and earned a master's degree from the

Medill School of Journalism The Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications is a constituent school of Northwestern University that offers both undergraduate and graduate programs. It frequently ranks as the top school of journalism in the Unite ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Career

Main writes for the

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

, focusing on

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

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 ''The Advocate'' is Louisiana's largest daily newspaper. Based in Baton Rouge, it serves the southern portion of the state. Separate editions for New Orleans, '' The Times-Picayune The New Orleans Advocate'', and for Acadiana, ''The Acadiana ...

, 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, 2011 terror attacks and Hurricane Katrina. 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 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