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Minnesota doesn’t lack for voices — we’ve got columnists who could out-shout a hockey barn and beat reporters who make bureaucrats sweat through their polyester. But only a few deserve to be carved into the state’s journalism granite.
Here’s my definitive semi-annual list of Top-10 online and print veterans, followed by the young lions who are making the old guard check their rearview mirror.
Top-10 Veterans
1. Patrick Reusse — Star Tribune
Still pounding out three columns a week like it’s 1982, Reusse writes Minnesota the way most of us mutter about it over a snack. He’ll roast the Vikings, salute a town-team lifer, then spin a yarn about a ballpark vendor — all before you’ve finished your first cup of coffee.
Why he’s here: Legends don’t retire; they just get grumpier and better at it.
2. Jeremy Olson — Star Tribune
Hospitals dodge, health agencies spin, and Olson cuts through it like a surgeon who skipped anesthesia. A Pulitzer winner who still reports like he’s chasing his first scoop, he makes public health stories impossible to ignore.
Why he’s here: Because health care hides behind jargon, and Olson translates it into Minnesota plain-speak.
3. MaryJo Webster — Star Tribune
The newsroom’s data whisperer. Politicians and bureaucrats spin, but Webster’s spreadsheets don’t. She’s behind the charts that have blown up tax inequities, police patterns, and every other mess we’d rather not see.
Why she’s here: Numbers don’t lie — but people sure try. She makes sure the truth wins.
4. Andy Mannix — Star Tribune
Public safety, courts, corruption — Mannix works those beats like a guy who’s allergic to P.R. He’ll sit through 12 hours of hearings just to nail one sentence in a crooked cop’s testimony.
Why he’s here: Because “Minnesota Nice” has no place in a police report.
5. Briana Bierschbach — Star Tribune
The Capitol is her playground, and she’s watching when the knives come out in committee. She has sources that call her back, which in politics is like spotting a unicorn.
Why she’s here: She covers politics as a contact sport — and doesn’t flinch.
6. Peter Callaghan — MinnPost
He’s the guy who reads the bonding bill so you don’t have to. Writes about government plumbing with enough edge that you actually keep reading. Often scoops the dailies because he’s doing the work no one else wants.
Why he’s here: Government is boring until it empties your wallet. Callaghan makes sure you know when it’s coming.
7. Deena Winter — Minnesota Reformer
The watchdog that doesn’t stop barking until the door opens. She digs into public spending, bad deals, and shady operators. If you’re trying to slip one past the goalie, she’ll be the one pointing it out from the cheap seats.
Why she’s here: Because accountability only exists if somebody keeps asking uncomfortable questions.
8. Mara H. Gottfried — Pioneer Press
Decades on the St. Paul crime beat without losing her eye or her empathy. When the sirens fade, Gottfried is still there talking to the people who matter.
Why she’s here: St. Paul trusts her because she’s been there longer than most of its mayors.
9. Frederick Melo — Pioneer Press
Covers City Hall with the mix of detail and snark that makes zoning fights read like bar brawls. Melo is St. Paul’s unofficial town crier, with a sharper pen.
Why he’s here: Because city politics is where the action is — and Melo doesn’t miss a punch.
10. Greta Kaul — Star Tribune
She writes the blueprint of the Twin Cities future: housing, transit, and all the messy debates about who gets left behind. Kaul connects policy to potholes in a way that matters.
Why she’s here: Because the built environment isn’t background — it’s the whole play.
Young Lions — The Next Wave
Walker Orenstein — Star Tribune
Covers the energy and environment beats most readers ignore — until the bill shows up. Orenstein reads the fine print so your lights stay on.
Why he’s here: Because infrastructure is news, even if nobody clicks until the power goes out.
J. Patrick Coolican — Minnesota Reformer
Founded a newsroom, still slings stories. Editor, builder, and reporter all in one. He’s got vision and the stamina to back it up.
Why he’s here: Because journalism needs more architects who still pick up the hammer.
Dana Ferguson — MPR News
Came up through Forum, now MPR’s Capitol voice. Fast, accurate, and willing to chase a bill down the hallway.
Why she’s here: Because somebody has to write politics like it matters — she does.
Mohamed Ibrahim — MinnPost
Covers environment and public safety with a sharp edge. Cuts through the fog of agencies and gets to the root of what’s happening on the ground. He’s the guy taking on stories most outlets push to the back burner.
Why he’s here: Because MinnPost needed a watchdog with bite, and Ibrahim showed up hungry.
Torey Van Oot — Axios Twin Cities
Two-paragraph newsletters that scoop half the Capitol press corps. She’s fast, sharp, and doesn’t waste words.
Why she’s here: Because if you’re not on her morning email, you’re already behind.
Andrew Hazzard — Sahan Journal
Covers climate and environmental justice like it’s personal — because it is. He shows up in neighborhoods, not just news conferences.
Why he’s here: Because the air and water you live with are worth a beat reporter.
Max Nesterak — Minnesota Reformer
Fearless on labor, housing, and inequality. Writes with bite and doesn’t care if you’re comfortable reading it.
Why he’s here: Because journalism isn’t about making the powerful feel cozy.
Jessie Van Berkel — Star Tribune
Connects state systems and social services to the people they actually affect. Balanced, sharp, and still climbing.
Why she’s here: Because empathy and skepticism together make great journalism.
This list isn’t a popularity contest or a nostalgia trip. It’s who’s actually doing the work now, in 2025 — pounding keyboards, breaking stories, explaining the complicated, and cutting through the spin. Minnesota still has print voices that matter, from the lifers who won’t leave the press box to the young bloods reshaping what a newsroom looks like.
And if you think we missed someone? Prove it with a byline.