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San Francisco Chronicle
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle projects shine at Society for News Design's annual competition
The San Francisco Chronicle earned 13 honors — including two bronze medals — at the Society for News Design's annual competition, which recognizes excellence in visual journalism across the globe. The wins, announced in April following judging in Minneapolis, underscore the Chronicle's continued commitment to data-driven and design-forward storytelling. The winning entries were newsroom-wide collaborations led by members of the Chronicle's design, data, photo, editorial, audience and marketing teams and the Hearst DevHub. The Chronicle's standout project, an investigation into the long-term impacts of mass incarceration on San Francisco's Japantown, received bronze medals in both infographics and digital design, and an Award of Excellence for illustration. The project was praised by judges for, among other things, its powerful storytelling blended with effective use of historical maps, demographic data and illustrations. The Chronicle earned 10 more Awards of Excellence for work in local news, sports, lifestyle and investigative reporting. Judges praised the California College Admissions Guide for pairing crisp infographics with an elegant, user-friendly design, while the Painted Ladies project earned a nod for visually untangling San Francisco's property-tax quirks. Honors also went to a graphic breakdown of Stephen Curry's ever-evolving game, the striking layout of a feature on AI-generated images of the city, a playful guide to scoring a coveted reservation at the House of Prime Rib, and a deeply-reported look at Powell Street's post-pandemic struggles. The Chronicle's investigative work also earned praise. Judges honored 'Fast and Fatal,' a data-rich probe of deadly police chases, and 'S.F.'s Path to Tragedy,' an interactive look at the city's record overdose deaths, for turning complex public-safety crises into clear, urgent storytelling. Rounding out the haul was the Kamala Harris News Assistant — an innovative AI tool spearheaded by the DevHub that lets readers explore decades of Chronicle reporting on the vice president — which earned an award for experimental product and platform design. 'These awards show the continued commitment to excellence in all forms of visual storytelling from the Chronicle and our collaborative partners within Hearst Newspapers,' said Alex Fong, the Chronicle's creative director and SND's vice president. Fong also served as a judge for the competition this year in the World's Best Designed category, which honors the publications with the highest overall achievement for design in print and in digital worldwide. He abstained from judging the Chronicle's entries and was not present during any discussions of the Chronicle's work. 'The results are a cross-newsroom and cross-organization success, with honors for work that pushes the boundaries of visual, data and product design and development for news,' Fong said. 'I'm proud that our regional news organization is producing work that stands toe-to-toe against what far larger publications are making.' The San Francisco Chronicle ( is the largest newspaper in Northern California and the second largest on the West Coast. Acquired by Hearst in 2000, the San Francisco Chronicle was founded in 1865 by Charles and Michael de Young and has been awarded six Pulitzer Prizes for journalistic excellence. Follow us on Twitter at @SFChronicle.
New York Times
10-04-2025
- Science
- New York Times
Meet the Butterflies Thriving While the World Convulses
At this moment, hundreds of thousands of Painted Lady butterflies are fluttering along one of the most astonishing migrations in the insect world: an epic trip of roughly 4,500 miles from the sub-Saharan region to the Arctic Circle, at a speed of up to 30 miles per hour. Over the course of a year, the butterflies will fly about twice that — more than 9,000 miles in all. The Painted Ladies are one of the most widely distributed butterflies in the world, appearing on every continent except Antarctica and sometimes crossing the seas and oceans between them. Just last year, researchers discovered that a flock of Painted Ladies rode the wind over the Atlantic Ocean from West Africa to the northern coast of South America — the first documented insect journey across an ocean. The Painted Lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) undertakes the longest known butterfly migration — an annual, multigenerational journey between Europe and tropical Africa. In search of blooming flowers and host plants, these butterflies travel more than 9,000 miles round-trip, crossing deserts, seas and mountains along the way. Lifecycle stages Painted Ladies live for about 1–2 months; it takes 6–10 generations to complete their full migration. Caterpillar 2-4 weeks Egg 5-14 days Chrysalis 1-2 weeks Adult 3-4 weeks Enlarged below Worldwide range none high low Migration route In September, the butterflies head south in search of warmer climates. In the summer, some butterflies travel as far north as the Arctic Circle. 1 Sept.–Oct. 5 Asia April–Aug. Europe 4 Feb.–May AFRICA 2 Nov.– Jan. 3 Jan.–Feb. One Painted Lady flock flew almost 3,000 miles from Western Africa to South America in 2013. After wintering in tropical Africa, the butterflies turn back to the north in January or February. Worldwide range Caterpillar Lifecycle stages 2-4 weeks none Painted Ladies live for about 1–2 months; it takes 6–10 generations to complete their full migration. high low Egg 5-14 days Enlarged below Chrysalis 1-2 weeks Migration route In September, the butterflies head south in search of warmer climates. Adult 3-4 weeks 1 Sept.–Oct. In the summer, some butterflies travel as far north as the Arctic Circle. Asia Europe 5 April–Aug. 4 Feb.–May AFRICA 2 Nov.–Jan. One Painted Lady flock flew almost 3,000 miles from Western Africa to South America in 2013. 3 Jan.–Feb. After wintering in tropical Africa, the butterflies turn back to the north in January or February. Lifecycle stages Migration route Painted Ladies live for about 1–2 months; it takes 6–10 generations to complete their full migration. In the summer, some butterflies travel as far north as the Arctic Circle. In September, the butterflies head south in search of warmer climates. 1 Sept.–Oct. Caterpillar 2-4 weeks Egg 5-14 days Asia Europe 5 April–Aug. 4 Chrysalis Feb.–May 1-2 weeks Adult 3-4 weeks AFRICA Worldwide range none high low 2 Nov.–Jan. One Painted Lady flock flew almost 3,000 miles from Western Africa to South America in 2013. 3 Jan.–Feb. After wintering in tropical Africa, the butterflies turn back to the north in January or February. Enlarged at right Source: Dr. Gerard Talavera; Note: Illustrations are not to scale. The Painted Lady's migration, chronicled in the photographer Lucas Foglia's new book, 'Constant Bloom,' is a powerful reminder of our interconnections with nature and our shared stake in an ever-changing world The butterflies' resilience shows us that some species are capable of adapting to dramatic changes in climate, food availability and urban development. But they also require humans' attention to continue thriving. If we don't protect their breeding grounds and nectar sources, these butterflies could meet the same fate as many others. While there is no data showing a change in the population of Painted Ladies, a recent study revealed that American butterfly populations decreased 22 percent between 2000 and 2020, in part because of habitat loss, climate change and farmers' use of insecticides. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
