From crooks to cops and politicians, why government transparency and a free media is more important in the era of "fake news" is the topic of the Bosworth Lecture Series opener on Thursday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. at the Rogers Free Library. The event is free and open to the public. Seating will be limited.
            WPRI Television News investigative reporter Tim White will walk the audience through how he exposed a powerful lawmaker for lying to his constituents, and other examples of reporting on organized crime in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts.
            Mr. White will detail how he confronted former State Rep John Carnevale about whether he was living in Johnston or Providence after the lawmaker was seen on WPRI video famously pulling a T-shirt over his face to conceal his identity. The 2016 investigation resulted in the politician’s indictment.
            He has been an investigative reporter at the Channel 12 CBS news affiliate for 12 years. He is the recipient of four New England Emmy Awards and has been honored for stories probing government waste in RI, Providence’s troubled pension system and a lack of accountability at a local fire district.
            Mr White is a co-author of “The Last Good Heist,” the story of a daring hdeist on a secret bank of safe deposit boxes used by the New England mob. A half hour documentary on the Bonded Vault heist was also nominated for an Emmy.
            In 2015 he won a regional Edward R. Murrow award for investigative reporting. He is the executive producer and host of WPRI 12’s current affairs program "Newsmakers." In 2013 The Washington Post selected him as one of the state’s top political reporters. Prior to joining Eyewitness News, Tim worked in Boston television, most recently as managing editor at WBZ-TV.
            He serves on the board of directors for the New England First Amendment Coalition, a Boston-based group that aims to defend, promote and expand public access to government and the work it does.
            Born in Newport, he graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a degree in communications. He and his wife live in Bristol with their two children. He is the son of the late Jack White, the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter.
The Roswell S. Bosworth, Jr Lecture Series is presented by the Men's Club, a local organization that pays tribute to its founding member, former editor and publisher of the East Bay Newspapers, with lectures of general interest to the R.I. audience. Other Bosworth Lectures this season include Oct. 11: Kevin Jordan on Lombard Pozzi; and Nov. 8: Arlene Violet on Election 2018.