Veteran broadcast journalist Bob Read manages Inside Edition's award-winning Investigative Unit. At the helm since the 1993-94 season, Read's unit has developed a reputation for the pursuit and detection of scams, rip-offs and hazards that threaten the safety of consumers. The unit has earned many of journalism's most prestigious honors, including the George Polk Award, the Investigative Reporters and Editors Medal, the National Press Club Awards, Sigma Delta Chi Awards, Headliner Awards, the Prism and EMMA Awards.
Under Read's direction, the Investigative Unit has consistently produced a variety of hard-hitting reports. In the 2010-2011 season alone, Inside Edition won a National Headliner Award for its undercover investigation of a nationwide mold and duct cleaning scam. Hidden camera footage captured employees using scare tactics and bogus tests to convince a homeowner that her house was plagued by dangerous mold, requiring expensive and totally unnecessary repairs. Other notable investigations exposed the opulent lifestyles of some of the most popular TV preachers, brazen thieves caught in the act as they unwittingly swiped bicycles and laptops outfitted with tracking devices, and the illegal slaughter of retired thoroughbred race horses so their meat can be sold for human consumption.
"It is particularly rewarding when our investigative stories prompt regulators to take action and legislators to create laws that protect vulnerable consumers," Read explains.
Read credits the success of the Investigative Unit to the commitment Inside Edition has always given to investigative reporting. "We've been able to assemble a talented and committed group of journalists, who are determined to get to the bottom of a story. They are fair, honest, ethical and driven to make a difference."
Read began his journalism career at ABC News's 20/20. During his eight-year tenure there, he produced a wide variety of news, features and investigative reports. He also worked at Dateline NBC, where he produced mainly investigative reports. Read lives in Long Island, New York, with his wife and two children.