Reporter Who Shielded Source Guilty of Contempt
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A TV reporter was convicted of criminal contempt Thursday for refusing to say who leaked him an FBI videotape of a politician taking a bribe.
Jim Taricani of WJAR-TV was found guilty by a federal judge after a 45-minute trial and could get up to six months in jail when sentenced next month.
Taricani called the verdict an “assault on journalistic freedom.”
The video shows an undercover FBI informant giving an envelope of cash to a top aide to then-Providence Mayor Vincent “Buddy” Cianci Jr. Cianci and the aide, Frank Corrente, were convicted in a corruption case and are in prison.
Taricani, 55, broke no law by airing the tape in 2001, but a special prosecutor was appointed to find out who leaked it because the court had ordered that no one release any tapes connected to the case.
U.S. District Judge Ernest Torres has said the leak was meant to either disrupt the investigation or deprive defendants of a fair trial by influencing prospective jurors.
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