PROVIDENCE -- Channel 10 reporter Jim Taricani, who was criminally
convicted of contempt for protecting his source, will be honored next
week by a prominent broadcast group.
The Radio-Television News Directors Association said Taricani defended a
basic principle of journalism when he wouldn't say who gave him a secret
FBI videotape showing a city official taking a cash bribe.
Taricani was found in contempt of court last year for refusing to
identify his source, and sentenced to home confinement. He was released
Saturday after serving four months.
"Jim Taricani is a hero to those of us in journalism," said Bob Priddy,
RTNDA chairman. He also praised Taricani's news director, Betty-Jo
Cugini and WJAR-TV, an NBC affiliate, for their support of Taricani.
Taricani and Cugini will receive "presidential citations" from the
organization and speak at its convention next week in Las Vegas.
The FBI tape was part of a federal investigation into corruption at
Providence City Hall, which sent former Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. and
other officials to prison.
After Taricani's conviction on Nov. 18, a Providence defense lawyer came
forward as the source of the tape.
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