journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
with the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. Before joining the ''Times'', St. John was at the ''
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
The ''Sarasota Herald-Tribune'' is a daily newspaper, located in Sarasota, Florida, founded in 1925 as the ''Sarasota Herald''.
History
The newspaper was owned by The New York Times Company from 1982 to 2012. It was then owned by Halifax Media ...
'', where she earned the 2011
Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting
The Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting has been awarded since 1953, under one name or another, for a distinguished example of investigative reporting by an individual or team, presented as a single article or series in a U.S. news publicat ...
. The Pulitzer was the ''Herald Tribune''s first, "for her examination of weaknesses in the murky property-insurance system vital to Florida homeowners, providing handy data to assess insurer reliability and stirring regulatory action."
Life
St. John graduated from
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university in Edwardsville, Illinois. SIUE was established in 1957 as an extension of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.Butler 1976, p. 18 It is the younger of the two major inst ...
in the early 1980s.
She joined the LA Times Sacramento bureau in July, 2012. She began her career at ''
The Detroit News
''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the '' Detroit Tribune'' on Februa ...
.'' Later, she worked for the ''
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
'' in
Traverse City, Michigan
Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was ...
and Charleston, West Virginia. St. John went to Florida to become
Gannett
Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. and then joined the Herald-Tribune in 2008.
The Pulitzer Prize was awarded to St. John for her series "Florida's Insurance Nightmare," which discussed the Florida property insurance industry. St. John spent two years investigating the state's insurance system, and her series had already been recognized with the
Scripps Howard Award
The Scripps Howard Awards, formerly the National Journalism Awards are $10,000 awards in American journalism given by the Scripps Howard Foundation.
As of 2022, the categories are:
* Excellence in Coverage of Breaking News
* Excellence in Broad ...
, National Headliner Award, and
Investigative Reporters and Editors Award
Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. (IRE) is a nonprofit organization that focuses on improving the quality of journalism, in particular investigative journalism. Formed in 1975, it presents the IRE Awards and holds conferences and training ...
. The 2011 Pulitzer jury said St. John, who was involved in the development of Internet applications for insurance analysis, offered "handy data to assess insurer reliability" and prompted legislative reforms. St. John was chosen by the 2011 Pulitzer jury over three other finalists:
Walt Bogdanich
Walt Bogdanich (born October 10, 1950) is an American investigative journalist and three-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize.
Life
Bogdanich graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1975 with a degree in political science. He receiv ...
,
Sam Roe Sam Roe is a journalist who was part of a team of reporters at the ''Chicago Tribune'' that won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting for an examination of hazardous toys and other children's products. He is currently an editor for the ...
, and Jared S. Hopkins.
In June 2019, St. John began hosting the ''Man in the Window'' podcast, which is produced by the ''Los Angeles Times'' and
Wondery
Wondery is an American podcast network and publisher of numerous award-winning podcasts, including Dirty John, Dr. Death, and The Shrink Next Door. Wondery was founded in 2016 by entrepreneur and media executive Hernan Lopez. The company was lau ...
. The series covers the case of the Golden State Killer, a serial rapist and murderer tied to hundreds of crimes from 1974 to 1986 across California.
Family
She is married and has a daughter; her husband, John Wark, was a Pulitzer Prize finalist while working for the ''
Orlando Sentinel
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company.
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...