Jennifer Bjorhus

Notable work and positions

Star Tribune (Minneapolis) - Environment Reporter (2008-2024)
St. Paul Pioneer Press; The Seattle Times; The Oregonian; San Jose Mercury News - Reporter (prior roles)

Biography

Jennifer Bjorhus was an American journalist who covered the environment for the Star Tribune in Minneapolis. A Minnesota native, she graduated from Carleton College in 1986 and earned master's degrees in journalism and Asian studies from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1994. She began her career as a general assignment reporter at The Seattle Times and went on to cover business at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, The Oregonian and the San Jose Mercury News before joining the Star Tribune in 2008. Over nearly 16 years at the paper, she covered business, criminal justice and, in her final years, the environment, reporting on topics including climate change, water quality and conservation. She was part of the Star Tribune team that won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the killing of George Floyd and its aftermath, and was a 2018 Pulitzer Prize finalist for "Denied Justice," a series exposing breakdowns in Minnesota's investigation and prosecution of rape cases; that series also won a Sigma Delta Chi Award from the Society of Professional Journalists. Her investigative work on police use of force and police licensing discipline won the Al Nakkula Award for Police Reporting and a National Headliner Award, and she was named Journalist of the Year in 2018 by the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Bjorhus died of brain cancer on August 16, 2024, at age 59.

Career highlights

• Pulitzer Prize 2021 · Part of the Star Tribune team honored for coverage of the killing of George Floyd and its aftermath.
• Pulitzer Prize finalist, "Denied Justice" 2018 · Exposed systemic failures in Minnesota's handling of rape and sexual assault cases.
• Minnesota Journalist of the Year 2018 · Named by the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.