Joseph Rago, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the Wall Street Journal, has died, according to the newspaper.
The body of Rago, 34, was discovered at his Manhattan apartment on Thursday night. The Journal reported that when he didn’t show up to work on Thursday, “Paul Gigot, the editor of the Journal’s editorial page, had alerted the paper’s security officials, who then contacted the police.”
Police then entered his apartment at 7:40 p.m., and emergency responders pronounced him dead at the scene.
According to the New York Times, there were no obvious signs of trauma. “The cause and manner of death are pending further studies following today’s examination,” the medical examiner’s office told the Times.
Gigot added, “It is with a heavy heart that we confirm the death of Joseph Rago, a splendid journalist and beloved friend. Joe and his family are in our thoughts and prayers, and we will be celebrating his work in Saturday’s paper.”
In a tribute, the Wall Street Journal’s Editorial Board wrote about his Pullitzer Prize-winning work on Obamacare, saying that “he read everything on the subject, from academic literature on insurance markets to scientific papers on new drugs as he fought the Food and Drug Administration for faster approvals for patients. He had sources from industry, Capitol Hill, think tanks and HHS.”
The Pulitzer organization had lauded his “well crafted, against-the-grain editorials challenging the health care reform advocated by President Obama.”
It added: “We can say from experience that Joe was also a capital comrade-in-arms, a colleague you could disagree with and still join for a beer. He could argue about Donald Trump without making it a showdown about your personal character. This is admirable in any age, but especially in these polarizing times.”
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