Jack White (reporter)
Encyclopedia
Jack White was a veteran Rhode Island
journalist who won a Pulitzer Prize
for his coverage of President Richard Nixon
's underpayment of income tax
es. White's investigative article prompted Nixon to utter his famous line, "I am not a crook." White also won Emmy Award
s for his reporting on fugitive banker Joe Mollicone and Providence
tax officials who violated the city's residency requirement. He was considered the dean of organized crime
reporting in Rhode Island.
in 1969, and joined the Providence Journal-Evening Bulletin a year later. White made the transition to television in 1979, when he joined the investigative team at WBZ-TV in Boston. He worked as a reporter and columnist for the Cape Cod Times
from 1981 to 1984 before joining WPRI-TV as chief investigative reporter in 1985.
. White would later recall rolling the story out of his typewriter, folding it up and putting it in his wallet. He said he never thought about giving the story to management, even though he risked missing the story. "I was dreading the information I had was going to get out there. Every day I was checking out-of-town newspapers," he later told The Providence Journal
. Twelve days later, the strike ended, and the story ran on October 3, 1973. At an Associated Press
Managing Editors convention the following month, one of White's colleagues asked Nixon about the story, and Nixon replied, "People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I am not a crook." Nixon agreed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. The final total was $432,787.13 plus interest.
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
journalist who won a Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
for his coverage of President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's underpayment of income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
es. White's investigative article prompted Nixon to utter his famous line, "I am not a crook." White also won Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s for his reporting on fugitive banker Joe Mollicone and Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
tax officials who violated the city's residency requirement. He was considered the dean of organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
reporting in Rhode Island.
Career
White also worked as an investigative reporter at WPRI-TV in Providence. He began his career at the Newport Daily NewsNewport Daily News
The Newport Daily News is an independent six-day daily newspaper serving Newport County, Rhode Island. It publishes in the afternoon on weekdays and in the morning on Saturdays. The Daily News is the state's largest family-owned newspaper.- History :The Daily News has been locally owned since it...
in 1969, and joined the Providence Journal-Evening Bulletin a year later. White made the transition to television in 1979, when he joined the investigative team at WBZ-TV in Boston. He worked as a reporter and columnist for the Cape Cod Times
Cape Cod Times
The Cape Cod Times is a broadsheet daily newspaper serving Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by the Dow Jones Local Media Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is also the sister paper of the weekly The Barnstable Patriot.-History:The paper...
from 1981 to 1984 before joining WPRI-TV as chief investigative reporter in 1985.
Nixon scandal
White's Pulitzer-winning scoop almost didn't happen. Working off a tip and tax documents, White learned that Nixon failed to pay a large portion of his income taxes in 1970 and 1971. The night he was prepared to write the story, in September 1973, the union representing reporters at the newspaper voted to go on strikeStrike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
. White would later recall rolling the story out of his typewriter, folding it up and putting it in his wallet. He said he never thought about giving the story to management, even though he risked missing the story. "I was dreading the information I had was going to get out there. Every day I was checking out-of-town newspapers," he later told The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal, nicknamed the ProJo, is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper, first published in 1829 and the oldest continuously-published daily newspaper in the United States, was purchased...
. Twelve days later, the strike ended, and the story ran on October 3, 1973. At an Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Managing Editors convention the following month, one of White's colleagues asked Nixon about the story, and Nixon replied, "People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I am not a crook." Nixon agreed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. The final total was $432,787.13 plus interest.
External links
Obituary links (may be volatile):- WPRI
- mediabistro.com 1 2
- AP via Seattle Times
- Cape Cod Times (Google cache)