Simon Williams
Simon Williams si-mon wil-lee-ams (he/him)
News Reporter, Washington, D.C.

Simon Williams expects to graduate in May 2022 with a degree in sports journalism and a minor in religious studies. Williams, who has experience in play-by-play broadcasting, live event production, digital media and strategic communications, is working in the D.C. Bureau.

Latest from Simon Williams

Arizona bowl organizers look to bounce back from 2020’s fanless games

WASHINGTON – With COVID-19 protocols prohibiting fans at the Fiesta and Arizona bowls last year, organizers of the three college bowls in Arizona are eager to welcome fans and teams back this year.


Rittenhouse rejected, respected by feuding factions on ASU campus

WASHINGTON - He is not currently enrolled in any classes or present on campus, but Kyle Rittenhouse is already casting a long shadow at Arizona State University.


It’s beginning to look a lot like a post-COVID Christmas for retailers

WASHINGTON - In the second holiday season of the pandemic era, goods may cost more, but Americans have more money to spend - and they appear to be eager to spend it, and that's true in Arizona, where retailers say holiday shopping is already in full swing.


FCS playoffs extend football season for ‘a lot of ballers’ from Arizona

WASHINGTON - None of Arizona’s three Division I football teams will vie for a national championship this fall, but 25 players with Arizona ties still have a shot - as part of the 24 teams squaring off in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoffs that begin Saturday.


House approves $1.9 trillion ‘Build Back Better’ social spending plan

The House passed the 10-year, roughly $1.9 trillion "Build Back Better" bill early Friday, a plan supporters say would extend tax credits, child care, health care and more to tens of thousands of Arizonans but which still needs Senate approval.


2 years, 7 months, 22 days: Brandon Williams back after long hoops layoff

WASHINGTON - It was just one game for former University of Arizona basketball standout Brandon Williams, but it was a meaningful one - his pro debut with the G-League Westchester Knicks ended a two-year, seven-month, 22-day wait to get back to the game he loves.


Democrats’ slimmer $1.75 trillion Build Back Better still has skeptics

WASHINGTON - Democratic leaders said Thursday that they reached agreement on a $1.75 trillion "framework" for their Build Back Better plan, a sweeping social and environmental spending plan that would increase funding for everything from child care to Medicare.


Tucson native lands on U.S. rugby for ‘colossal’ game with All Blacks

WASHINGTON - Rugby has taken Ryan Matyas all over the world, but the Tucson native quickly runs out of superlatives when talking about Saturday's "massive," "colossal" game, when he will be playing on the U.S. national team against New Zealand's legendary All Blacks.


Supporters seek national designation for Tucson’s January 8th Memorial

WASHINGTON - Organizers behind the January 8th Memorial marking the Jan. 8, 2011, mass shooting in Tucson that killed six and wounded 13, including then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, want the site to earn a national designation, but the National Park Service is lukewarm to the idea.


Maricopa officials blast election review’s ‘spread of disinformation’

WASHINGTON - Maricopa County supervisors told a congressional committee Thursday that the state Senate's review of the county's 2020 election results amounted to a "staggering refusal to follow the will of the voters."


Protesters confront Sinema directly, she calls the move ‘unacceptable’

WASHINGTON - Progressives upset with Sen. Kyrsten Sinema took their protests directly to the Arizona Democrat this weekend, ambushing her in public spaces three times to get answers on immigration reform and spending on social programs.


From the Hill to the mound: Playing ball is break from political brawl

WASHINGTON - Arizona Reps. Greg Stanton and Ruben Gallego, both Phoenix Democrats, among the players at this week's Congressional Baseball Game that pits Republicans against Democrats, lets them let their hair down and raise money for charity at the same time.


McCain, Flake face light questioning in chummy confirmation hearing

WASHINGTON - It was supposed to be a confirmation hearing for the ambassadorial nominations of Cindy McCain and former Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake, but their appearance Tuesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee sounded more like a family reunion at times.


Arizonans join hundreds of female athletes opposing strict abortion law

WASHINGTON - Nine Arizonans are among the more than 500 female athletes who signed on to a brief to the Supreme Court this week challenging Mississippi's restrictive new abortion law, which abortion opponents see as a vehicle for overturning Roe v. Wade.


Fencing goes up around Capitol again, as police brace for Jan. 6 rally

WASHINGTON - Fences, cameras and barricades went up around the Capitol as federal and local police braced for possible violence at a Saturday rally defending those who were arrested in the Jan. 6 insurrection - but if anyone is coming from Arizona, they were not saying.


Brnovich joins Ducey, vows to block Biden’s business vaccine mandate

WASHINGTON - The Biden administration plan to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for workers in large companies is likely weeks away from being implemented, but Arizona officials are already lining up with pledges to stop it.


Arizona players reflect as Navy, Air Force meet on anniversary of 9/11

WASHINGTON - Saturday’s football game between Air Force and Navy will be the 54th between the two teams - and their first meeting on 9/11, leaving one Arizona-born Navy player with "goosebumps just thinking about it."


White House plan would help schools skirt Ducey ban on mask mandates

WASHINGTON - Gov. Doug Ducey's threat to withhold funding from schools that impose mask mandates took a severe hit Thursday, when the White House said local school districts can apply directly to the federal government "to restore funding withheld by state leaders."


Sharpe will play as a Wildcat, but not in Arizona; commits to Kentucky

WASHINGTON - Shaedon Sharpe's basketball journey from London, Ontario, to Glendale, Arizona, will continue in Lexington, Kentucky, after the No. 1 player in Arizona made a verbal commitment Tuesday to the University of Kentucky.


With 253,000 Arizonans behind on rent, court halts eviction moratorium

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court's decision to overturn a national eviction moratorium late Thursday comes as an estimated one-fifth of U.S. renters are behind on the rent - including 253,000 in Arizona.


Arizona Afghans relieved after Ducey’s refugee proposal, still worried

WASHINGTON - Afghans living in Arizona welcomed Gov. Doug Ducey's announcement this week that Arizona will accept refugees fleeing the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan - but they also worry that the state and U.S. responses will be too little, too late for their countrymen.


A PSA on SPF: Tips on getting the most protection from sunscreen

PHOENIX – Arizonans are at a particular risk for skin damage by the sun, wearing sunscreen prevents exposure to harmful UV rays and sunburns.


What is ‘brain fog,’ and why are COVID-19 long-haulers more susceptible?

PHOENIX – The National Institutes of Health is working to answer such questions as why do some COVID-19 patients experience more severe symptoms, and why some survivors experience "brain fog."


Arizonans host a range of events to mark brand-new Juneteenth holiday

WASHINGTON - The federal Juneteenth holiday may be brand new, but you might not know it from the number of celebrations already planned to mark the day in Arizona, with celebrations across the state scheduled to start Friday night and continue through Saturday evening.


With Jaelen House New Mexico-bound, transfer merry-go-round continues for ASU men’s basketball, others

PHOENIX – With five players in the transfer portal, ASU men’s basketball is facing a huge roster reconfiguration. So far, three transfers are set to join the Sun Devils in their place.


Ahead of WAC expansion, Grand Canyon basketball sets model for sustained success

Grand Canyon University’s men's basketball team reached a significant milestone by making the NCAA Tournament for the first time at the Division I level. A year before the Western Athletic Conference adds five new teams, GCU is trying to assert itself among its peers.


HoopHall West showcase event had all-Arizona look in COVID era

PHOENIX — For eight years, the Basketball Hall of Fame brought some of the nation’s premier high school basketball teams to the Valley for a jam-packed day of basketball. This year, the pandemic forced the HoopHall West event to showcase only Arizona schools.