Four University of California alumni named among the 2026 Pulitzer winners

The University of California said on May 14 that four alumni were recognized among the 2026 Pulitzer Prize winners, with honors spanning breaking news, explanatory, international and local reporting. The university said three of the winners are alumni of UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism and one is a UC Santa Barbara alumna. The Pulitzer Prizes announced this year’s winners on May 4. The alumni were cited for work tied to a school shooting, California wildfire insurance claims, global surveillance technology and immigration enforcement in Chicago. ### Which University of California alumni were named? UC Berkeley journalism alumni Kathleen Hennessey, Susie Neilson and Garance Burke were named by the university as 2026 Pulitzer winners, alongside UC Santa Barbara alumna Tess Kenny. The UC system said the four were honored for journalism produced at major U.S. news organizations including the Minnesota Star Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Associated Press and the Chicago Tribune. (universityofcalifornia.edu) The University of California said 45 UC faculty members and numerous alumni have earned Pulitzer Prizes across journalism, books, drama and music categories. The May 14 university post framed the latest winners as part of that broader record. ### What did Kathleen Hennessey win for at the Minnesota Star Tribune? Kathleen Hennessey, editor and senior vice president of the Minnesota Star Tribune, was cited by the university for leading the paper’s staff to the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting. (universityofcalifornia.edu) The Pulitzer board awarded that prize to the Minnesota Star Tribune staff for coverage of a shooting at a back-to-school Mass at a Catholic school. The Pulitzer site said the shooting left two children dead and 28 wounded, and described the coverage as marked by “thoroughness and compassion.” The University of California post separately said fellow UC Berkeley alumnus Andy Mannix also contributed reporting to the winning coverage. ### Why was Susie Neilson’s “Burned” series singled out? Susie Neilson shared the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting for the San Francisco Chronicle series “Burned,” according to both the university and the Pulitzer board. (universityofcalifornia.edu) The Pulitzer citation said Neilson, Megan Fan Munce and Sara DiNatale showed how insurance companies used algorithmic tools that failed Californians who lost homes to fire. (pulitzer.org) The Pulitzer board said the reporting found that those tools systematically undervalued properties, denied claims and made rebuilding difficult. The University of California said Chronicle visuals editor Maggie Beidelman, also a UC Berkeley journalism alum, supported the effort, and noted Neilson had been a Pulitzer finalist the previous year. ### What was Garance Burke’s international reporting about? (universityofcalifornia.edu) Garance Burke, a global investigative journalist at The Associated Press, shared the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting, the university said. The UC post said Burke’s winning work examined surveillance tools developed in Silicon Valley, advanced in China and deployed globally before returning to the United States for use by the U.S. Border Patrol. (pulitzer.org) The university quoted the Pulitzer jury as calling the reporting “an astonishing global investigation” into mass-surveillance technology. The UC post also said AP video producer Serginho Roosblad, another UC Berkeley journalism alum, contributed reporting. ### Where does Tess Kenny fit into the 2026 winners? Tess Kenny, a UC Santa Barbara alumna, was honored as part of the Chicago Tribune staff recognized for Local Reporting, according to the University of California post distributed on May 14. (universityofcalifornia.edu) The Pulitzer board awarded the Local Reporting prize to the Chicago Tribune staff for coverage of the Trump administration’s immigration sweep in Chicago. The Pulitzer citation said the Chicago Tribune’s work described the operation in “vivid, muscular prose” and documented how the action unified Chicagoans in resistance. The category placement mattered because the entry had been moved by the board from Public Service, according to the Pulitzer site. ### Where can readers find the official details? The Pulitzer Prizes published the 2026 winners and finalists list on May 4, and the University of California posted its alumni roundup on May 14. (publicnow.com) The UC article includes the names of the four alumni and identifies their campuses, while the Pulitzer site lists the winning organizations and official citations by category. (pulitzer.org)