Bloomberg Journalist Fires Back After Being Canned Over Russian Prisoner Swap Story: ‘Reporters Don’t Have the Final Say’
Bloomberg
Bloomberg News senior White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs shot back at the news outlet on Monday after she was fired for allegedly breaking embargo on a story about the recent Russian prisoner swap.
Bloomberg News editor-in-chief John Micklethwait disciplined several employees this week, including Jacobs, for “clear violation of the editorial standards,” after they allegedly broke an embargo on the news of the prisoner swap, which resulted in Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich’s release from Russian captivity.
In a statement on Monday, however, Jacobs fired back at management and suggested that she had been scapegoated over the incident.
“As a journalist, the idea that I would jeopardize the safety of a fellow reporter is deeply upsetting on a level that’s difficult to describe. I am so happy Evan Gershkovich and the others are home,” she wrote, adding:
In reporting the story about Evan’s release, I worked hand in hand with my editors to adhere to editorial standards and guidelines. At no time did I do anything that was knowingly inconsistent with the administration’s embargo or that would put anyone involved at risk.
Reporters don’t have the final say over when a story is published or with what headline. The chain of events here could happen to any reporter tasked with reporting the news. This is why checks and balances exist within the editorial processes.
I deeply respect the Wall Street Journal and all of the work they did to bring one of their own home. I am proud to be part of the journalism profession and have great admiration for my fellow reporters that do this important work.
According to the New York Times, multiple news organizations had knowledge of the prisoner swap “before it happened, under the condition that the organizations could not publish the news until the prisoners were safely out of Russian hands and in U.S. custody.”
Micklethwait told staff in an email that the Bloomberg News article – which reported that the prisoners had already been released, when in fact they had not – appeared to have been “prematurely published.”
“Even if our story mercifully ended up making no difference, it was a clear violation of the editorial standards, which have made this newsroom so trusted around the world,” he said, according to the New York Times.
