Thomas Loren Friedman (born July 20, 1953, in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is an acclaimed American journalist, author, and political commentator. A three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times, he is renowned for his expertise in foreign affairs, globalization, the Middle East, and environmental issues. Friedman began his career in 1978 with United Press International in London and joined The New York Times in 1981. He served as Beirut bureau chief during the Lebanese Civil War, winning his first Pulitzer in 1983 for international reporting, followed by a second in 1988 as Jerusalem bureau chief covering Israeli politics. He became a weekly op-ed columnist in 1995 and won his third Pulitzer in 2002 for commentary on the post-9/11 world. Friedman is the author of bestselling books including 'From Beirut to Jerusalem' (1989), which won the National Book Award, and 'The World Is Flat' (2005), a landmark exploration of globalization. He holds a B.A. in Mediterranean Studies from Brandeis University (summa cum laude) and an M.Phil. in Modern Middle East Studies from Oxford via a Marshall Scholarship. He has served as a visiting professor at Harvard, received honorary degrees, and contributes to programs like PBS's Washington Week. Raised in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, he resides in Bethesda, Maryland, and continues to shape public discourse on global issues through his columns and public appearances.