Should Media Employees Give to Campaigns?

A Q&A with Dave Levinthal, a writer for the Center for Public Integrity.

During the 2016 election, journalists have become part of the story in an unprecedented way. GOP Candidate Donald Trump has levied repeated accusations that the media is biased, insulting them and even barring them from covering his events. He seemed to find proof for this rallying cry in an article written by Dave Levinthal and Michael Beckel for the Center for Public Integrity. The story shows that of very few self-identified journalists who have given money to a presidential candidate, 96 percent gave to Hilary Clinton. The piece quickly flew around the Internet, aided in part by Donald Trump. It’s long been a rule in journalism that reporters should not donate to political campaigns. But the story’s examples left many underwhelmed. We spoke with Levinthal about how his story, as well as how campaign coverage during this election has changed given the media’s role in the spotlight. He said, "If there's anything, I think, to be taken from that it's that there really isn't much of a standard practice across the news industry when you throw publications large and small, when you throw in radio, television, online print, be it what it may. It really just depends on the news organization itself."