- Tom Shales
Tom Shales (born
November 3 ,1944 ) is an American critic of television programming and operations. He is best-known as TV critic forThe Washington Post ; in 1988, Shales received thePulitzer Prize . He also writes a column for the television trade publicationTelevisionWeek , and blogs for its online extension, TVWeek.com.Background and education
Born in Elgin,
Illinois , Shales graduated from Washington D.C.'sAmerican University . He was Editor-In-Chief of the student newspaper, "The Eagle", for the 1966-1967 academic year [ [http://www.library.american.edu/about/archives/eagle_history.html American University Library - History of The Eagle ] ] , and appointed himself movie critic. [ [http://www.postwritersgroup.com/shales.htm The Washington Post Writers Group ] ]Career
Early years
Shales's first job was with radio station WRMN, in Elgin, at the age of 18. He filled the station's AM and FM airwaves as disc jockey, local news reporter, writer and announcer. He later worked with
Voice of America as a producer of broadcasts to the Far East. [ [http://www.postwritersgroup.com/shales.htm The Washington Post Writers Group ] ]Shales worked as Entertainment Editor at the
Washington Examiner from 1968-1971. [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1143576/bio Tom Shales - Biography ] ] He joinedThe Washington Post as a writer in the Style section in 1972, was named chief television critic in July 1977, and was appointed TV Editor in June 1979. The Washington Post Writers Group has syndicated his column since 1979. [ [http://www.postwritersgroup.com/shales.htm The Washington Post Writers Group ] ]"The Washington Post"
Shales has written for the "Washington Post" newspaper for several decades, and is generally credited for popularizing the idea of treating TV as seriously as theater or film from a critic's point of view.Fact|date=February 2007
Broadcasting
During 1998-1999, Shales was a frequent film critic for "
Morning Edition " onNational Public Radio . [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/author-708/ ROTTEN TOMATOES: Tom Shales - Rotten Tomatoes ] ] He was twice a guest co-host on the television show "Roger Ebert & the Movies" after the death ofGene Siskel . [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1143576/maindetails Tom Shales ] ]Books
His books include "" (2002, co-authored with James Andrew Miller) about the peaks-and-valleys history and behind the scenes conflicts of NBC's long-running sketch comedy show, "On the Air!" and "Legends: Remembering America's Greatest Stars".
Honors
Shales received the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 1988, for his work at "The Washington Post". [http://www.postwritersgroup.com/shales.htm]
External links
* [http://www.tvweek.com/blogs/tom-shales/ Tom Shales' blog]
References
Persondata
NAME= Shales, Tom
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=American critic of television programming and operations
DATE OF BIRTH=November 3 ,1944
PLACE OF BIRTH=Elgin,Illinois
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=
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