Phil Williams, the NewsChannel 5 reporter known for his criticism of the effort by Governor Bill Lee to expand school choice in Tennessee, claimed on Friday that meddling by rich progressives in state politics is unworthy of his reporting because Republicans have a majority in the General Assembly.
Williams failed to acknowledge the recent funding of Nashville and Memphis by Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities, a climate change initiative backed by former New York mayor and Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg.
The reporter and columnist, who has been accused of being a far-left and partisan member of the Nashville press, claimed in a post to the social media platform X that a Republican critic who was “willing to engage in honest conversation” recently questioned Williams about his reporting.
According to Williams, the Republican critiqued Williams for because he does “not dog progressive millionaires and billionaires who are trying to influence public policy.”
“While there are examples elsewhere in the country, my focus is on Tennessee politics – and he admitted there are no progressive millionaires and billionaires trying to influence the Tennessee legislature,” Williams claimed.
The television reporter then claimed that he is additionally motivated by the majorities enjoyed by Republicans in the General Assembly, writing, “Republicans have a supermajority in Tennessee, which means that they justifiably get more of my attention.”
Absent from Williams’ post was any reference of the recent, twin announcements from Nashville and Memphis, which confirmed participation in Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities in March.
The Bloomberg project will involve $200 million in federal funds combined with “multi-year, in-depth, customized policy and technical assistance” provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Special focus will be afforded within the program for “communities of color,” while the project will also focus on “affordable energy-efficient housing, increasing access to clean energy,” and “investing in electric vehicles and infrastructure.”
In addition to Nashville and Memphis, the Bloomberg-backed effort is approved in Chattanooga.
Bloomberg is currently estimated by Forbes to be worth more than $106 billion and is reported to be the 13th richest man in the world today.
Williams and his journalistic integrity recently faced scrutiny following his decision to publish secretly-recorded audio of a meeting held by school choice advocates. Williams was accused of withholding comments made by one of the article’s subjects.
Additionally, it seems that no person who was actively engaged in the meeting knew it was being recorded, meaning Williams’ source for the clandestine audio apparently committed a felony offense within Tennessee.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and the Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Phil Williams” by NewsChannel5.
