Ben Berke

Reporter

Ben covers everything for Ocean State Media, as long as it’s a good story. His work appears across television, radio, social media, and our website. He joined the station in 2021 after a stint in newspapers, and now handles our metro beat in Providence. His assignments have taken our audience to jails, city halls, fishing boats, factories, museums, bakeries, environmental cleanup sites and a clambake.

Recently published
Rhode Island has pulled back its $35M investment, rerouting funds to other projects as the Trump administration freezes offshore wind permitting
The city council approved the Providence Rent Stabilization Act on Thursday, which would have placed a 4% cap on annual rent increases for most Providence apartments
The Providence City Council is still one vote short of a supermajority that could override Mayor Brett Smiley’s expected veto. The policy would cap annual rent increases at 4% with exceptions for owner-occupants.
Anonymous letters claimed a judge threw cases in favor of a prosecutor he was seeing romantically. A court-appointed investigator found no evidence to support the allegations
Though Mayor Brett Smiley said he plans to veto the Providence Rent Stabilization Act, city councilors appear to be one vote short of a veto-proof supermajority. Councilor John Goncalves, who has not taken a public position on the legislation, is seeking to delay the vote