Natasha Korecki

Natasha Korecki is an American journalist and the author of the book "Only in Chicago," How the Rod Blagojevich Scandal Engulfed Illinois and Enthralled the Nation.

The late Roger Ebert said of Korecki's reporting: “As the circus of the Blagojevich saga unfolded, Natasha Korecki was right at the center—with stories, scoops, blogs, and tweets. It was a seriocomedy suited to her enterprise and imagination, and she’s the one to write the book.”

In 2015 she was hired by POLITICO to report on Illinois policy and politics.^[1][2] She helped launch POLITICO's Illinois Playbook,^[3] a daily tipsheet she authors each morning, Monday through Friday. Korecki formerly covered politics for the Chicago Sun-Times.^[4]

In April 2016, Korecki was named the 2015 Illinois Journalist of the Year by Northern Illinois University's Department of Communications.^[5]

Before taking on the political beat at the Sun-Times, she covered federal court for eight years including the trials of two former governors -- Rod Blagojevich and George Ryan.

After graduating the University of Illinois, she worked for 7 years as reporter and legal affairs writer for the Daily Herald. Since 2004 she covered federal courts for the Chicago Sun-Times.^[6] She covered high-profile trials of Rod Blagojevich, George Ryan, Tony Rezko, Conrad Black, Matthew F. Hale, and others. The "Blago" affair is covered in her 2012 book, Only in Chicago. In July 2012 she was reassigned to cover politics, succeeding Abdon Pallasch.^[7] Natasha Korecki maintained The Blago Blog at Sun-Times, which covered the investigation of Rod Blagojevich and related cases.^[8]

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