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Duke University faculty member Frank Bruni, Eugene C. Patterson Professor of the Practice of Journalism and Public Policy and author of multiple bestselling books, will be honored with the state’s highest civilian honor, the North Carolina Award.
Governor Roy Cooper will present the award to Bruni for his contributions to literature on Nov. 14 in Raleigh.
The award was created by the General Assembly in 1961 to recognize significant contributions to the state and nation in the fields of fine arts, literature, public service and science.
“In recognizing Frank Bruni with the highest civilian honor in North Carolina, we celebrate a remarkable literary talent who has a profound commitment to enriching our state and the world with his writing, journalism, teaching and service. We are so fortunate to have Frank as our colleague at Duke and a member of our community in North Carolina. On behalf of the Sanford School and Duke University, I am delighted for Frank and congratulate him on this high honor,” said Sanford Interim Dean Manoj Mohanan.
Bruni joined the Duke University faculty in 2021 after an illustrious 25-year tenure at The New York Times. He is a faculty member of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy, Duke’s hub for journalism education in the Sanford School of Public Policy.
“Frank Bruni is a talented journalist and author who embodies the mission of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media & Democracy at Duke University’s hub for journalism and media studies. He is so deserving of this honor, and all of us celebrate this moment for him and our state,” said Phil Napoli, director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media & Democracy.
He continues to serve at the Times as a contributing opinion writer. His roles at the Times included positions as a metro reporter, White House correspondent, Rome bureau chief and chief restaurant critic. Bruni writes a popular weekly newsletter for the Times, as well as longer essays focused on American politics and cultural issues.
Bruni was the Times's first openly gay Op-Ed columnist, a role he held for a decade while also making frequent appearances as a television commentator. In recognition of his significant contributions to LGBTQ+ equality, he received the Randy Shilts Award from the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association in 2016.
Bruni is the author of five New York Times bestsellers: "The Age of Grievance" (2024), which delves into America's political dysfunction and culture wars; "The Beauty of Dusk" (2022), a poignant account of a rare stroke that threatened his eyesight; "Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be" (2015), which examines the college admissions frenzy; "Born Round" (2009), a memoir exploring the joys and challenges of his relationship with food; and "Ambling into History" (2002), a detailed chronicle of George W. Bush’s initial presidential campaign.
Before joining the Times, Bruni worked at the Detroit Free Press, where he served as a war correspondent, chief movie critic and religion writer. In addition to his journalistic pursuits, he has taught at Princeton University and has been actively involved at his alma mater, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He delivered the university's commencement address in 2022. In 2021, he received the Thomas Wolfe Prize from the Department of English and Comparative Literature at the university in 2021 recognizing contemporary writers with distinguished bodies of work.
Read the news release about the awards from the State of North Carolina.
Policy 360 podcast
Frank Bruni on his new book
Frank Bruni is a distinguished journalist and celebrated author. He joined Sanford's Policy 360 podcast to discuss his latest book, “The Age of Grievance,” which explores the cultural and political impacts of Americans’ fixation on grievances: “More and more Americans are convinced that they’re losing because somebody else is winning," he said.