Michael attended City College in New York. He began his writing career as a newspaper reporter for the Washington Post and later served as successful travel writer for major magazines and newspapers before concentrating on the environment and the out-of-doors.
After years as a journalist, he began a new career in higher education, teaching at the universities of Idaho and Vermont, Northland College (Wisconsin) and Western Washington University, where he directed a pioneering program in environmental journalism and writing. He earned a doctorate in 1993 from the Union Institute and University (which in 1999 named him Outstanding Alumnus of the Year).
He retired in 1995 from the faculty of Western Washington University. The University of Idaho established in his honor the Michael Frome Scholarship for Excellence in Conservation Writing. Among other honors are the Wilderness Writing Award from the Wild Foundation, the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Award (for his work on behalf of national parks), and the 1980 award from the American Society of Journalists and Authors for the best magazine article of the year (“The Un-Greening of the National Parks”). In 1994 the Outdoor Writers Association elected him to its Circle of Chiefs for distinguished conservation writing.
Michael’s most recent publication from the University of Utah Press was published 2015. It was titled Rediscovering National Parks in the Spirit of John Muir.
He passed away in September 2016.