Bloomberg campaign wouldchallenge Bloomberg News
Michael Bloomberg at a bipartisan summit in Oklahoma, reported speculation about whether he plans to run for president has reached a fever pitch. But such speculation is scarce at the news service that bears his name.
Bloomberg News, the 18-year-old international news organization that's part of the financial media empire he built from scratch, already treads a fine line in covering its principle owner in his current incarnation as New York City mayor. According to its policy, Bloomberg News reporters do not write any stories that are based on rumors and speculation, and so have only cited other news stories about Bloomberg's possible presidential aspirations.
Media critics, ethics experts and Bloomberg insiders agree, however, that the impact of a Bloomberg candidacy on Bloomberg News could be formidable. "It would be novel, to say the least," said Matt Winkler, Bloomberg News' editor in chief. "It would limit some of the things that we would do about him and as a result limit some of the things we do about others, because we couldn't play favorites in this, and we couldn't skew coverage in one way and not another way."
For instance, Winkler said, Bloomberg News would be unlikely to do an investigation into some aspect of Michael Bloomberg, which would then keep it from doing such stories about other candidates.
When Bloomberg was elected mayor of New York, the news agency hired the then-dean of Columbia University's journalism school, Tom Goldstein, as a consultant to help ensure fair coverage. Winkler said Goldstein remains a consultant on various issues, including coverage of Michael Bloomberg.
Potential conflicts of interest between reporters and the owners of their news companies are nothing new. Publishers large and small frequently have involvement in politics, and many reporters - particularly business reporters - have experience covering their employers. It can be done fairly, experts say, but it takes vigilance.
"He should be treated like any other politician," said Bob Steele, an ethics expert at the Poynter Institute. "You cannot remove entirely the perception that there are competing interests, but you can manage those competing interests in ways that significantly protect the journalistic integrity."
Though Bloomberg News has been covering Mayor Bloomberg for more than six years, the far higher prominence of a presidential candidate could present a whole new set of challenges for an international news organization expected to cover the campaign comprehensively, said Jane Kirtley, a professor of media ethics and law at the University of Minnesota.
"The news media these days are already accused of partisanship and bias, and it's going to be very difficult to avoid the, frankly, perfectly reasonable belief that Bloomberg journalists are going to be expected to support their owner," Kirtley said. "The only thing I can think of that's going to make it possible is the buzzword of the era, which is transparency."
Winkler said that he does not believe reporting on New York City has suffered, partly because Bloomberg News prepared for the issues of a Bloomberg Administration during the mayoral race. A presidential campaign would also require strategizing, he said, but added, "Every problem's an opportunity."
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