Posted on 11/26/2019 10:05:11 AM PST by SeekAndFind
After Michael Bloomberg confirmed his run for president on Sunday, the news service that bears his name said it would not “investigate” the billionaire or any of his Democratic rivals.
A former editor of his Bloomberg Businessweek title branded the decision “staggering” and said journalists at Bloomberg News “deserve a hell of a lot better than this”.
The editor-in-chief, John Micklethwait, announced the new rules in a note to 2,700 journalists and analysts.
“There is no point in trying to claim that covering this presidential campaign will be easy for a newsroom that has built up its reputation for independence in part by not writing about ourselves,” Micklethwait wrote.
Bloomberg started his news service in 1990 to complement the financial information he sold to customers. It operates a TV and radio network and the business magazine.
Micklethwait said reporters would still cover polls, policies and how the Bloomberg campaign is faring. But they will not do investigative stories on Bloomberg or any other Democratic contender. It will continue to investigate the Trump administration.
If other credible organizations do investigative stories on Bloomberg or other Democrats, the news service will summarize or publish them in full, Micklethwait said. Bloomberg News “has handled these conflicts before – and proved our independence”, he added.
The announcement prompted criticism from some former Bloomberg journalists. When Bloomberg was considering a candidacy in 2016, politics news director Kathy Kiely resigned, saying she did not feel she could do her job without covering him aggressively.
Kiely said the new rules “relegate his political writers to stenography journalism … it’s not satisfying for journalists and it’s not satisfying for readers. I think people will go elsewhere for in-depth political coverage.”
Kiely said Bloomberg should step completely away, instead of undermining an organization
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
"We are extremely alarmed by management's decision to silence the journalists we represent at Bloomberg Industry Group, as well as the unrepresented journalists at Bloomberg News," wrote the union in a late Monday letter.
"We call on Bloomberg corporate management to rescind its policy and allow journalists throughout the Bloomberg family to do their jobs."
Our statement regarding #Bloomberg’s editorial decision not to investigate Democratic Presidential candidates@business @BBGIndustry @BLaw @environment @BGOV @tax pic.twitter.com/BZcSU3mdNB — Guild at Bloomberg Industry Group (@GuildatBIG) November 26, 2019
"The Guild believes journalists should not only be allowed - but encouraged - to thoroughly cover every single candidate as the profession demands in one of the most important elections in modern history," the union added. "A journalist's job is, above all, to cover the news and to serve as an independent monitor of power."
The controversial decision announced by editor-in-chief John Micklethwait, was announced last week to the outlet's 2,700 journalists and analysts. They will still cover polls, policies and how the Bloomberg campaign is doing, however investigative stories on Bloomberg or any other Democratic candidate are now banned. They will continue to investigate and report on the Trump administration.
Will they stop reporting on Trump? What if Bloomberg wins the nomination?
So he doesn't want to do something? Who cares?
RE: Will they stop reporting on Trump? What if Bloomberg wins the nomination?
That’s the problem — they won’t stop reporting on Trump but they won’t report anything negative on Bloomberg.
I’m not sure if this violates our campaign laws. Bloomberg is not a publicly traded company.
RE: No one takes Bloomberg serious. Not him. Not his “news service”. Not his lame attempt to run for POTUS.
Let’s not underestimate what MONEY can buy.
If Bloomberg wins the nomination the news service becomes a full-on completely biased Democrat party cheerleader conducting a shrieking, hate-filled propaganda campaign against Trump. In other words, nothing much changes.
well, ya gotta at least give them credit for explicitly announcing that they’re an official Dem propaganda outfit, instead of pretending like the rest of the dying lying leftist fake stream enemedia that they’re “fair and balanced”
I’m shocked that’s coming from you.
Maybe there’s nothing illegal about.
But it’s VERY antithetical to the things our country is supposed to stand for and we bitch and gripe about those things all the time.
This is one of them.
And you response is “who cares?”
and because no one takes it seriously, as you say, that gives it an excuse to send us further into fascism?
No.
What are the “journalists” willing to do ...quit? I doubt it.
Bloomberg’s TV ads are already running in the DFW metroplex along with Tom Steyer’s. Good, let them burn their money!
Emoluments! Oh, Bloomie is a Democrat now? Then Trump is guilty of that last bit.
Waiting for the media to say he has to give up all his businesses...
So it’s just another PR firm, not a news service.
Why doesn’t anyone mention that this is a huge political contribution?
I can sort of understand not reporting on Bloomberg since it is his news service; but, what is their reason for not reporting on other Democrat candidates.
What credence would an investigation by Bloomberg News have with any thinking person?
If he is investigated and nothing is found wrong, would any of us think that was he final word on it?
If they found some guilt, would be buy that was the whole of it?
It might have been better for them to just keep silent on this.
Bloomberg is running because America is already voting.......with its checkbooks......for Trump.
The Dems have no money to speak of.
Bloomberg is financing the Hate Trumpers to mark Trump up all he can.
Bloomberg understands the Dems will certainly lose if someone can’t buy the ads to trash Trump.
He is 77, all he has is money to offer on his farewell tour.
There is already something and I found it in two seconds because I remembered. In 2013 he said if anything, white people are over pulled over too much by the cops. And that would destroy him with minorities
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