William Pittman is a Pascagoula native who began contributing to the Mississippi Free Press just as the pandemic arrived in the state in March 2020. His COVID-19 infographics and other data projects quickly drew the attention of national figures like MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. 

In November 2020, he used his data expertise to produce a series of maps and charts for the 2020 Mississippi Trusted Elections Project, helping shed light on polling-place changes across the state. The investigative journalism he did as part of that project became the cornerstone for a report he co-authored with his husband and colleague, Mississippi Free Press state reporter Ashton Pittman, on the unfolding controversy surrounding the inherent racial disparities at the center of a last-minute Madison County polling precinct change.

William's first published piece, a personal story about the struggles he faces on a daily basis as someone diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, a severe mental illness, appeared in DIME Entertainment Magazine in December 2016. Later, his 2018 interview with University of Southern Mississippi student leader Brandon Rue on his efforts to turn out college voters drew widespread attention, including from celebrities like comedian Chelsea Handler.