Forbes Top Editor Ousted After Taking $6 Million ‘Gift’ From Magazine Partner

Screenshot via @randall.lane on Instagram

A top editor at Forbes was fired last month after the magazine learned he had accepted an undisclosed payment of roughly $6 million from the founder of a company that works closely with the publication, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

Randall Lane, Forbes’ chief content officer, received the money from RJ Shook, founder of Shook Research, which has partnered with the magazine for a decade to produce its rankings of wealth advisers.

The payment reportedly came after Shook sold a majority stake in his company to private equity firm PPC Enterprises last August. Lane viewed the money as a personal gift recognizing years of advice he had given Shook, according to a source familiar with his thinking.

Forbes policies, however, bar employees from personally benefiting from the company’s business relationships and require approval for outside business activities, according to an employee handbook obtained by the Times.

“I made a mistake, and I take responsibility for it,” Lane told the newspaper. “I should have disclosed the gift, and failing to was a serious error in judgment. I deeply regret that, and I lost the job and team I love because of it. None of this changes how I feel about Forbes and the amazing people there.”

Lane and Shook reportedly became close after taking part in a Forbes-organized humanitarian trip to Liberia in 2013, with Lane later acting as an informal adviser to Shook.

Their companies also had a lucrative relationship. Shook Research helps compile Forbes-branded rankings of financial advisers, while those who land on the lists can purchase plaques, logos and enhanced online profiles celebrating the recognition. Forbes and Shook split revenue from those purchases.

The payment was discovered after PPC Enterprises reviewed Shook Research emails following its acquisition and alerted the magazine, according to the Times. Lane acknowledged receiving the money when confronted by Forbes in July and was subsequently fired.

Executive editor Kerry Lauerman has since taken over Lane’s role on an interim basis.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!