Joyce Purnick

Joyce Purnick (born May 17, 1946) is an American columnist and journalist. ^[1]

Joyce Purnick
Born	(1946-05-17) May 17, 1946 (age 79)
Nationality	American
Education	B.A. Barnard College
Occupation	Journalist
Spouse	Max Frankel ​ ​ (m. 1988; died 2025)​
Parent(s)	Charlotte Leah Purnick Jack Purnick
Relatives	David Frankel (stepchild)

Biography

Purnick was born on May 17, 1946, in New York City,^[1] the daughter of Charlotte Leah and Jacob "Jack" Purnick.^[2][3] In 1967, she graduated with a B.A. from Barnard College.^[1]

In 1970, she started her career as a news clerk with the New York Post eventually rising to chief political writer.^[1] In 1979, she accepted a position at The New York Times focusing on New York state, New York City government, and the New York City school system.^[1] In 1989, she served on the paper's editorial board as the paper's urban affairs analyst.^[1] In 1994, she wrote the twice weekly Metro Matters column covering local New York topics.^[1] In 1997, she was named deputy editor of the Metro department, the paper's largest section and the first woman to do so.^[1] In 1999, she returned to writing Metro Matters.^[1]

Awards

• 1996-97: Mike Berger Award from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.
• 1996: George Polk Award for metropolitan reporting for an exposé on the neglect of abused children by the city's welfare system
• 1987: Peter Kihss Award for reporting on city government from the Fund for the City of New York
• 1979: Front Page Award from the Newswomen's Club of New York for political columns in New York magazine
• 1975: from the Newspaper Guild and the Newswomen's Club of New York for feature writing at the New York Post

Books

• Mike Bloomberg: Money, Power, Politics (2009)

Personal life

Purnick was married to writer and former New York Times executive editor, Max Frankel. ^[1][2] She lives in Manhattan. ^[1]