Alex Kotlowitz

Raised in New York City, Alex Kotlowitz attended Wesleyan University, Connecticut, where he discovered his passion for reporting on issues of urban life and social policy, in particular race and poverty in America. Throughout his career, Kotlowitz has shown a commitment to delving deep into people’s life stories to give voice to the powerless and illustrate larger societal problems. As a Wall Street Journal staff writer from 1984 to 1993, Kotlowitz began writing about the difficulties that children face in poor, urban environments. This led him to publish There Are No Children Here in 1992, which became a national bestseller and won many awards. In 1998, he published his second book, The Other Side of the River: A Story of Two Towns, a Death and America’s Dilemma, which explores racial inequality in the United States through a mysterious death in a small town. In addition to the written word, Kotlowitz also uses film and radio to share his reporting—pursuits that have earned him multiple awards. He currently lives with his family just outside of Chicago, Illinois.