Pyle, Ernie (1900–1945)

US journalist. During World War II he accompanied Allied forces in the invasions of North Africa, Italy, and Normandy, and reported from the front lines with personal stories of soldiers and their lives. His reports, collected in Here Is Your War 1943 and Brave Men 1944, won great popularity and earned him a Pulitzer Prize.

He was born near Dana, Indiana. Leaving college to become a reporter for the La Porte (Indiana) Herald, he had various other jobs, including that of managing editor of the Washington (DC) News. In the late 1930s he devoted himself to reporting, especially as a correspondent in Latin America. He was killed by Japanese gunfire during the US landing on Okinawa and became a national hero.