Blog: Pulitzer for Paige St. John and her investigation of Florida’s insurance crisis

Congrats to Sarasota Herald-Tribune reporter Paige St. John who today won a Pulitzer Price for investigative reporting for her two-year investigation of Florida property insurance crisis.

“…St. John faced major roadblocks to getting the story,” said the Herald-Tribune in their story about the honor. “Reinsurance companies refused interview requests. State regulators forbade staff employees from speaking and initially denied, then delayed requests for public records crucial to creating the newspaper’s first-of-its kind analysis of what really had happened to the Florida insurance market.

“St. John cultivated anonymous sources deep within the industry, persisted in her demands for public records, and traveled to Bermuda and Monte Carlo, both beehives for off-shore financial dealings, to confront corporate leaders who were otherwise unavailable.

“The result was what regulators and almost the entire industry tried to hide — that Floridians entrust their financial security and that of their communities to a system that is on the edge of disaster itself.”

The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald were finalists for their terrific Haiti coverage.

Find this article here:  http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/pulitzer-paige-st-john-and-her-investigation-flas-insurance-crisis