Bloomberg sacks reporter for violating 'editorial standards' in publication of Evan Gershkovich release

Bloomberg News takes disciplinary action against staff for prematurely publishing US' biggest prisoner swap story since Cold War.

Bloomberg News has taken “disciplinary action” against several editorial staff after “prematurely” publishing news of a historic prisoner swap between Russia and the United States, which potentially endangered the safety of the Americans being released.

Bloomberg News is apologizing for a premature story written about the prisoner exchange and says it has disciplined the journalists involved. The story was put out by Bloomberg hours before an embargo was lifted by the White House. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)(AP)

In an email to staff, editor-in-chief John Micklethwait stated that disciplinary actions were taken, although details on who, how many, or what the punishments entailed were not disclosed.

Jennifer Jacobs, a White House reporter for Bloomberg News, was reportedly fired.

Micklethwait wrote, “Last Thursday, we prematurely published a story on the release of Evan Gershkovich and the other prisoners, which could have endangered the negotiated swap that set them free... it was a clear violation of the editorial standards which have made this newsroom so trusted around the world.”

US traded 16 citizens for 8 Russians in historic prisoner swap

The news outlet published its scoop about the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich and other American citizens at 7:41 am ET, while a plane from Moscow carrying them was still en route to Ankara for the exchange. Following the publication, a Bloomberg editor celebrated the scoop on X, “It is one of the greatest honors of my career to have helped break this news. I love my job and my colleagues” which sparked outrage from other outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, who had held the news under embargo until the exchange was completed. The editor’s tweet was later deleted.

Micklethwait mentioned that he had apologized to the American hostages involved in the swap, including Gershkovich, ex-marine Paul Whelan, and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva. The US traded 16 American, German, and Russian citizens for eight Russians, including spies and a convicted assassin in German custody.

“Following a full investigation... we have today taken disciplinary action against a number of those involved and we will be reviewing our processes to ensure that failures like this don’t happen again,” Micklethwait added.

Jacobs, in a statement posted on X, expressed her distress: “As a journalist, the idea that I would jeopardize the safety of a fellow reporter is deeply upsetting... I worked hand in hand with my editors to adhere to editorial standards and guidelines.”