Phil Williams

About

Dubbed "Nashville's Nosiest Bitch" by HBO's John Oliver for his unflinching journalism, Phil has set the standard for serious investigative journalism on the state and local level, making a difference in his community year after year and earning him the industry’s highest honors and praise from his peers. Those honors include being a four-time recipient of the prestigious duPont-Columbia Award and George Foster Peabody Award. In 2023, Phil became the first local broadcaster to be recognized with the John Chancellor Award for Excellence in Journalism and the only TV journalist to ever receive a coveted Toner Prize for political reporting. Beginning his career as a print reporter, Phil was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. In 2020, a Washington Post media critic listed Phil’s work as one of the “flickers of hope for local journalism.” Reviewing one of Phil’s most recent projects, one judge declared: “This is what a great local news investigation looks like." Another observed, "I’m blown away by these pieces and will be using them to teach.” Phil’s hard-hitting, exhaustive journalism has resulted in him being repeatedly listed among the most influential people in Nashville and the state of Tennessee.