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Joel Rosenblatt

Joel covers the forces in San Francisco — money, business, personalities, local law, and politics — that bind the city and pull it apart. He most recently worked for Bloomberg News reporting on state and federal courts.

Previously, he covered the crime beat for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and was a freelancer in New York City. Before that, he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal. He was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, studied public policy at Occidental College in Los Angeles, and has a Masters degree from Columbia Journalism School.

Mahmood pushes back on Lurie’s plan to cut Tenderloin youth clinic 

District 5 supervisor says mayor’s proposal to close the Larkin Clinic as part of $400 million budget cuts isn’t final

April 14, 2026

A brutal setback for fans of Vaillancourt Fountain

Judge’s decision puts the controversial sculpture one step closer to removal

April 9, 2026

Mayor Lurie on layoffs: ‘Everyone is going to feel these cuts’

Nurses are in the first round of city job eliminations, but cuts to police officers are ‘not in the cards’

April 7, 2026

Is Uber responsible for its drivers’ behavior?

A San Francisco judge weighs whether or not the ride-hailing company is liable when drivers commit sexual assault

April 3, 2026

Matt Dorsey’s RESET crusade may come at a political cost

The District 6 supervisor has been the mayor’s steadfast ally on the treatment center, but has ‘caught hell’ from constituents along the way

March 31, 2026

One reset after another

Already delayed, the city’s new RESET sobering center won’t open until May

March 26, 2026

A $2.1 billion tweet: Elon Musk defrauded Twitter investors

A San Francisco jury found the Tesla CEO liable for $2.1 billion in damages over tweets

March 20, 2026

Elon Musk threatened to go ‘World War III until the end of time’ on Twitter’s board

As the jury deliberates a verdict in the fraud trial brought by shareholders of the social media platform, their decision may hinge on one lawyer’s testimony

March 18, 2026