Leonard Pitts Jr.
Leonard Pitts Jr. joined The Miami Herald in 1991 as its pop music critic and has penned a syndicated column focusing on pop culture, social issues and family life since 1994. Leonard Pitts is the author of six books, his latest, "Becoming Dad: Black Men and the Journey to Fatherhood," was published in 1999.
Pitts has been writing professionally since 1976 when, as an 18-year-old college student, he began writing freelance reviews and profiles for Soul, a national black entertainment tabloid. In 1978, he became its editor. In the years since, Pitts' work has appeared in such publications as Musician, Spin, TV Guide, Reader's Digest and Parenting. In addition, he wrote, produced and syndicated "Who We Are," an award-winning 1988 radio documentary on the history of black America, and has written and produced numerous other radio programs on subjects as diverse as Madonna and Martin Luther King, Jr. Pitts was also a writer for radio's popular countdown program, "Casey's Top 40 with Casey Kasem."
Leonard Pitts is a four-time winner of the American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors' Award for Excellence in Commentary, a five-time winner of the National Headliners Award given by the Press Club of Atlantic City, and a six-time winner of the Green Eyeshade Award given by the Society of Professional Journalists. The Florida Society of Newspaper Editors, the National Association of Black Journalists, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Editor and Publisher magazine and GLAAD Media, among others, have also honored him. In 2002, the National Society of Newspaper Columnists awarded Pitts its inaugural Columnist of the Year award, and in 2004 he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for commentary.
Leonard Pitts Jr. Samples
A pointed comment on Reagan's legacy
A picture, the saying goes, is worth a thousand words. The two were apparently engaged in a discussion of Arizona's controversial immigration laws and of a 2010 White House meeting that Brewer described at the time as "very cordial."
For worse or for worst, guns rule
In a democracy, nothing is supposed to matter more than the will of the people. So it was painful to watch last week as the will of the people was overturned and one of Arizona's duly elected representatives was forced from office.
Gingrich follows GOP playbook on racism
I got my first job when I was 12. So I do not need Newt Gingrich to lecture me about a good work ethic.
Reverence: R.I.P.
You might call this a requiem for reverence.
Our war troops: They won't forget what they've seen
Nearly 30 years ago Greg told me how it was, cutting the ears off dead men. I had sought out Vietnam veterans to interview for a story about a pop song that was inspired by the war -- "19" by Paul Hardcastle.
Join the cause and get a copy of 'The New Jim Crow'
I have something for you. In June 2010, I wrote in this space about a book, "The New Jim Crow," by Michelle Alexander, which I called a "troubling and profoundly necessary" work.
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