Petrelis Files

[This story was inaccurate and a correction has been attached on the bottom.]

As best as I can determine, the Associated Press wire service does not have a prohibition on reporters giving to political candidates or PACs, so the fact that several AP reporters have made political donations does not appear to violate any of the wire's policies.

The AP Managing Editors ethics code states: "Journalists are encouraged to be involved in their communities, to the extent that such activities do not create conflicts of interest. Involvement in politics, demonstrations and social causes that would cause a conflict of interest, or the appearance of such conflict, should be avoided." (Source: AP guidelines)

Two AP reporters gave to their state GOP committees, still write for the wire and cover politics. They are:

SONNER, SCOTT
6/20/2000 $1,300.00
RENO, NV 89520
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
NEVADA STATE REPUBLICAN CENTRAL COMMITTEE

SMITH, MICHAEL A
8/1/1996 $500.00
INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46254
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
INDIANA REPUBLICAN STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE

SMITH, MICHAEL A
8/2/1996 $494.00
INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46254
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
INDIANA REPUBLICAN STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
(Source: Political Money Line)

Having read no more than a handful of political stories by Sonner and Smith for the AP, I can't say that I detected any pro-GOP bias in their articles, so maybe their donations haven't overtly influenced their reporting.

But, at the same time, I do think the AP has a responsibility to inform readers that Sonner and Smith gave money to PACs, and let the reader know such facts.

The most recent donation from an AP reporter was the following:

05/22/2002
Singer, Paul
2835 S. Moreland Blvd. Apt. 12
Cleveland, OH 44120
$75.00
reporter Associated Press
Reich, Robert
(Source: MA campaign disclosures)

Reich is a former Bill Clinton labor secretary who ran for governor of Massachusetts.

Google searches on Singer show he wrote for the AP at least up to 2002, but I couldn't find any stories by him after then, so he may no longer be with the wire.

These listings for AP employees came up on the Political Money Line web site. I not sure if Julia Denny Clark or Douglas A. Richardson were on an AP bureau's editorial at the time of their donations, but I include the data on them in the hope that someone can tell if they were reporters or editors for the AP, or worked on the noneditorial staff of the wire service.

And Alan Cooperman is no longer with the AP. He now writes for the Washington Post.

COOPERMAN, ALAN
4/17/1991 $250.00
BROOKLYN, NY 11231
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
CITIZENS FOR CHRISTOPHER HODGKINS

MARTELLO, THOMAS
6/24/1992 $295.00
DOYLESTOWN, PA 18901
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
NEW JERSEY REPUBLICAN STATE COMMITTEE

RICHARDSON, DOUGLAS A
7/28/1992 $500.00
INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46220
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
INDIANA REPUBLICAN STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE

RICHARDSON, DOUGLAS A
8/21/1992 $687.00
INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46220
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
INDIANA REPUBLICAN STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE

RICHARDS, CHARLES
4/20/1984 $500.00
RALLS, TX 79357
ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
DON RICHARDS FOR CONGRESS

CLARK, JULIA DENNY
6/8/1993 $500.00
PRINCETON, NJ 08540
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
EMILY'S LIST

CLARK, JULIA DENNY
10/22/1993 $250.00
AMENIA, NY 12501
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS -[Contribution]
EMILY'S LIST

KOEHLER, JOHN O MR
8/3/1979 $670.00
STAMFORD, CT 06902
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS NY -[Contribution]
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - CONTRIBUTIONS (AKA REPUBLICAN NATIONAL FINANCE COMMITTEE

(Source: Political Money Line)

The more I research FEC and state campaign disclosures from reporters and media personalities, the clearer it becomes that journalists are giving money to politicians and causes, and have done so for years.

I don't believe this practice is about to end anytime soon, but it's time for media outlets to disclose to their readers and audiences when donations are made.

Media transparency about political giving will go a long way toward keeping journalism honest and restoring media credibility after the Jayson Blair scandal did much to erode confidence many Americans once had in journalists.

-

Jan. 27, 2006
CORRECTION:

Leading up to the November 2004 election, I devoted much time and attention to donations made by reporters, editors and all sorts of media moguls to candidates and PACs.

Along the way, I learned that when a donation from a journalist showed up on Federal Election Commission records, generally in odd amount, like $341.32, not a nice round $1,000 figure, it often meant the journalists had to pay a fee for legitimate costs associated with newsgathering. But the campaigns, under FEC rules, report the fees paid as donations.

Well, out of the blue, an AP reporter has contacted me about an earlier posting of mine that gave the impression he'd donated to a party, so I'm making amends and sharing his letter.

Hey, Thomas Martello, I stand corrected. Not only am I posting your letter here, I'm also attaching it as a correction to my original mistake. Thanks for keeping me on my toes.
-

Michael:

I just stumbled upon your 2004 report about reporters who made political donations and noticed my name was among those you listed.

For the record, I made no political donation to the New Jersey Republican State Committee in 1992. I covered the New Jersey delegation to the Republican National Convention in Houston for The Associated Press that year. The money was sent to the Republican State Committee as part of the charges it made to news organizations that covered the delegation. I believe this charge was for a bus shuttle they had set up for reporters who wanted to tag along with the delegates; the Republican State Committee had predicted transportation would be a nightmare. I wrote the check and was reimbursed by AP.

The next year, I was surprised to discover the Republican State Committee had included on its list of political donors the names of reporters and news organizations that paid costs to cover the convention. I told the committee leaders this was pretty bone-headed of them, and the news organizations, including AP, pushed to get the names off the list. I can’t remember what eventually happened, but apparently there I am, in cyber-perpetuity, as a journalist who donated to a political party. I’m saying it ain’t so.

For the following decade, the Republicans thought I was a donor, sending me lots of literature, pleas for money and envelopes with elephants on them. It was interesting to see how much harsher the political dialogue gets when political parties think you’re one of their loyal subjects.

As for the check I wrote, it was money poorly spent. I was also assigned to cover the Tennessee delegation that year (go figure), and had little time to wait for shuttle buses. The New Jersey GOP had wrongly warned of traffic messes and taxi cabs were plentiful. I think I got one shuttle ride for AP’s $295.

Thanks for your time.
Sincerely,
Thomas Martello