Will NBC Enforce Ethics Policy?

NBC Chief Pentagon Correspondent Received $30,000 for Speech Attacking Prominent Presidential Candidate

Washington, DC - Today, David Brock, President and CEO of Media Matters for America, sent a letter to Steve Capus, president of NBC News, sparked by a report that NBC chief Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszewski accepted $30,000 from the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce to address its Business EXPO 2007 -- an event at which Miklaszewski attacked presidential candidate and former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC), calling him a "loser" for defending a pricey haircut.

The letter asks Capus to make public NBC's policy pertaining to journalists participating in paid speaking engagements and to explain whether Mr. Miklaszewski violated that policy.

In 2002, Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz reported that professional journalists' accepting speaking fees is widely frowned upon by the media, and that a "number of news organizations including ABC and NBC, [have] banned the practice."

In 2006, responding to controversy surrounding Chris Matthews' acceptance of speaking fees from several corporate interests, then-MSNBC president Rick Kaplan clarified publicly that NBC has a strict policy prohibiting anchors from personally accepting speaking fees, and that anyone who did so "would risk being fired."

Excerpts from the letter:

"We recently learned that earlier this spring NBC News chief Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszewski accepted $30,000 from the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce to address its Business EXPO 2007 -- an apparent violation of NBC News' policy banning paid speaking engagements."

"Equally troubling, during his remarks Miklaszewski cast aspersions on presidential candidate and former Senator John Edwards (D-NC), calling him a 'loser' for defending a pricey haircut."

"As we have noted, Mr. Miklaszewski's remarks appear to be in direct violation of your network's ban on paid speaking engagements. I respectfully ask that you publicly release NBC's ethics and conflict-of-interest policies for journalists, and explain whether Mr. Miklaszewski's conduct comports with those policies."

Full text of the letter:

July 19, 2007
Mr. Steve Capus
President, NBC News
NBC Television Group
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10112-0037

Dear Mr. Capus,

We recently learned that earlier this spring NBC News chief Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszewski accepted $30,000 from the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce to address its Business EXPO 2007 -- an apparent violation of NBC News' policy banning paid speaking engagements.

Equally troubling, during his remarks Miklaszewski cast aspersions on presidential candidate and former Senator John Edwards (D-NC), calling him a "loser" for defending a pricey haircut. While this personal attack is not the chief reason for writing this letter, it is clearly inappropriate for a professional, impartial journalist to make and deserves your direct attention as well.

In 2002, Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz reported that professional journalists' accepting speaking fees is widely frowned upon by the media, and that a "number of news organizations including ABC and NBC, [have] banned the practice."

In 2006, responding to controversy surrounding Chris Matthews' acceptance of speaking fees from several corporate interests, then-MSNBC president Rick Kaplan clarified publicly that NBC has a strict policy prohibiting anchors from personally accepting speaking fees, and that anyone who did so "would risk being fired."

As we have noted, Mr. Miklaszewski's remarks appear to be in direct violation of your network's ban on paid speaking engagements. I respectfully ask that you publicly release NBC's ethics and conflict-of-interest policies for journalists, and explain whether Mr. Miklaszewski's conduct comports with those policies. If Mr. Miklaszewski's decision to give a speech paid for by a special interest group in which he attacked a presidential candidate is consistent with NBC's policies, I ask that you revise those policies to prohibit such actions.

Sincerely,
David Brock
President & CEO
Media Matters for America