‘Bordering on Untenable’: Report Details Frustrations at Bloomberg News Over Mike’s Candidacy
You may recall a few months ago, when Michael Bloomberg got in the race, there was a serious question of how Bloomberg News would deal with his candidacy.
The answer — detailed in a staff memo back in November by EIC John Micklethwait — garnered a lot of outside criticism, certainly not helped by the man himself saying “With your paycheck comes some restrictions and responsibilities.”
A report out today in The New York Times details the frustrations from journalists at Bloomberg News about the coverage restrictions laid out in that memo, including at a previously undisclosed staff town hall held back in December:
Rival candidates had attacked the journalists’ coverage as biased; some sources had stopped returning calls. One reporter said the bureau’s credibility was at stake, citing Mr. Micklethwait’s public memo that Bloomberg News would refrain from “investigating” Mr. Bloomberg and his Democratic competitors.
Mr. Micklethwait said he had been referring to a team of specialized investigative reporters and not the broader political staff, but he declined requests from the journalists in the room to issue a clarification. Many reporters left feeling unsure how to proceed, according to several people who described the previously unreported town hall meeting.
There have always been issues with Bloomberg News covering Bloomberg himself, and per the Times, “half a dozen Bloomberg journalists who requested anonymity, citing fear of retribution from bosses who emphasize discretion” are saying their situation is now “bordering on untenable.”
If these journalists hoped that Bloomberg’s candidacy was at least short-lived, well, without appearing at a single debate so far (though that may change this week) Bloomberg has made some serious gains in the Democratic primary race and is being talked about as a serious contender for the presidency. His campaign is spending millions and millions and millions on ads, they’re going on the attack against President Donald Trump directly, and in the past few months Trump has started talking about “mini Mike” quite a bit.
The report notes some critical reporting of Bloomberg’s campaign, including a January piece from Mark Niquette headlined “Bloomberg Offers Few Details to Back Up Trillions in Spending,” but journalists are still concerned not just about covering a Bloomberg candidacy, but a Bloomberg presidency if he goes all the way:
If Mr. Bloomberg, as he has mused in the past, were to sell his company if elected, some journalists there believe a new owner may not be willing to subsidize an expensive news-gathering operation that is ultimately tangential to the company’s core product, the financial data terminals that command princely subscription sums from the investing class.
And if a President Bloomberg held onto his media organization, how would Bloomberg News reporters cover Washington and a federal administration controlled by the man ultimately responsible for their paychecks?
The company declined to comment on those questions, and reporters there say it is too early to earnestly begin preparing for such an eventuality.
Bloomberg News sent a statement to the Times saying, “Over the past 30 years, editorial independence has been at the core of Bloomberg News. We are proud of the more than 760 articles Bloomberg News has published on the election and the candidates, not to mention a host of broadcast interviews, since Mike Bloomberg announced he was running for president.”
You can read that full report here.
