Dan Fagin
Dan Fagin
Dan Fagin
Dan Fagin has built a distinguished career investigating the intersection of environmental science, public health, and corporate accountability—work that earned him the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction for his meticulously researched book Toms River: A Story of Science and Salvation. The award recognized Fagin’s rare ability to transform a local environmental tragedy into a sweeping narrative that illuminates larger systemic failures and the determined individuals who fight against them. His work exemplifies the best of narrative nonfiction, where rigorous reporting and vivid storytelling combine to expose how industrial negligence affects ordinary communities.
Fagin’s background as an environmental journalist shapes his distinctive approach to longform narrative—he doesn’t simply report facts, but uncovers the human dimensions of environmental crises. In Toms River, he traces the devastating cancer cluster that emerged in a small New Jersey town back to decades of chemical dumping, weaving together the stories of residents, scientists, and whistleblowers who uncovered the truth. His writing is characterized by deep archival research, interviews spanning years, and a commitment to following evidence wherever it leads, even when it implicates powerful institutions. Through his work, Fagin explores themes of environmental justice, the struggle between corporate profit and public safety, and how ordinary people become unlikely heroes in fights for accountability and change.
