Natalie Pompilio

Natalie Pompilio is an award-winning writer and editor based in Philadelphia. Formerly a staff reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Philadelphia Daily News, and The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune, Natalie still contributes to those publications as well as to the The (Newark) Star-Ledger, the Associated Press, The Washington Post, and magazines including Delaware Today, Neurology Now, Haverford and The Penn Gazette. Natalie reported from Baghdad in 2003 as the insurgency against US military operations began gathering force. Her work there was honored with a citation from Knight-Ridder. She was in New Orleans in August 2005 before, during and after Hurricane Katrina as a reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Some of her work from that period was acknowledged by the American Society of Newspaper Editors and is included in its "Best Newspaper Writing 2006" book. In 2011, she shared a Clarion Award from Women in Communications for story with Daily News writers Molly Eichel and Becky Batcha for their piece documenting 24 hours at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia In 2014, the Keystone Press Association said her Philadelphia City Paper, "Michael's Story," was the year's best feature article in its category. The article documented the unlikely relationship between a mother who lost her son to violence and one of the men responsible for his death. Natalie has authored or co-authored three books: “More Philadelphia Murals and the Stories They Tell" (Temple University Press, 2006), written with Jane Golden and Robin Wright. "Walking Philadelphia: (Wilderness Press, 2017) "Philadelphia A to Z" (Self-published children's alphabet book) Natalie's strength is documenting the world through the eyes of ordinary people going about their lives — or facing extraordinary challenges. She has an eye for the telling detail and an ear for dialogue. She presents her subjects as themselves and not as characters. Natalie has a Bachelor's degree in The Writing Seminars from Johns Hopkins University and a Master's in Journalism from the University of Maryland.