On this episode we’re joined by three reporters from the San Francisco Chronicle – Susie Neilson, Megan Fan Munce, and Sara DiNatale.
The three of them won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting for the series of articles, Burned, which show how insurance companies using algorithmic tools have failed Californians who lost their homes to wildfires. They did so by systematically undervaluing properties, denying claims and making it impossible for them to rebuild. There were roughly 20 stories done on this project with a large team of contributors.
Susie, Megan, and Sara provided a behind-the-scenes perspective of how the stories came together. They also provided advice and insight for journalists who aspire to do such work.
Susie, Megan, and Sara’s salutes: The other Pulitzer Finalists for Explanatory Journalism at Bloomberg (Staff) and ProPublica (Brett Murphy and Anna Maria Barry-Jester).
A full list of Thank Yous From Susie, Megan, and Sara
Brontë Wittpenn (and pitbull Mama Wittpenn), Stephen Lam, Ryan Gabrielson, Kate Galbraith , Demian Bulwa, Emilio Garcia-Ruiz, Michael Gray, Sarah McGrew, Erin Caughey, John Blanchard, Alex Fong, Joy Jeong, Nami Sumida, Jessica Christian, Alisha Jucevic, Brooke Park , Christian Leonard, Anthony Edwards, Maggie Beidelman, Nicole Fruge, Emily Jan, Dan Kopf, Hannah Hagemann, Caleb Pershan, Linda Houser/Tafur,Shoka Safiee
Full series
Inside Burned (3 1/2 minute video)
15-minute summary
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