Secret deals, six-figure payoffs, salacious stories: Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker’s testimony at Donald Trump’s secret trial this week offered a rare window into the practice of checkbook journalism in the tabloids, where a publication pays its sources.
A scheme to “catch and kill” unflattering stories about Trump is at the heart of prosecutors’ case, alleging Pecker arranged to pay sources to obtain the rights to such stories in order to suppress them.
Trump was charged with 34 counts of fraud related to his alleged role in payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels in a “catch and kill” deal. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. He also denied having sex with Daniels.
Experts who spoke to ABC News described a small number of tabloids in the United States that offer direct payment for cooperation from sources, explaining why the practice is widely condemned but continues.
Here’s what you need to know about checkbook-based journalism and the role it plays in the hush money trial:
How did the National Enquirer finance its articles and why are they linked to the Trump affair?
The secret trial uncovered new details about the checkbook journalism overseen by Pecker, who served as CEO of National Enquirer parent company American Media Inc. from 1999 to 2020.
The magazine’s editors could spend up to $10,000 to get their hands on an article, but any payment above that required Pecker’s approval, he testified.
Pecker said he retained “the final say on the celebrity side of the magazines.”
“We used checkbook journalism and we paid for articles,” Pecker added.
Pecker made a “secret arrangement” with Trump and his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, during a “20 to 25 minute meeting” at Trump Tower in August 2015, Pecker testified.
Pecker testified that he suspected several women would come forward to buy stories about Trump during Trump’s campaign for president. If these stories emerged, Pecker said he would notify Cohen, per their agreement.
Cohen also agreed to provide Pecker with opposition research for negative stories about Trump’s opponents, Pecker said.
According to Pecker, most elements of their deal — including running positive stories about Trump and negative stories about his opponents — were “mutually beneficial” for Trump and Pecker.
“It would help his campaign, but it would help me, too,” Pecker said.
How common is the practice of paying for sources?
In his opening statement during Trump’s secret trial, defense attorney Todd Blanche said the National Enquirer’s practice of paying sources was consistent with standard journalistic practices.
In U.S. media, the practice of paying sources for stories is largely confined to tabloids like the National Enquirer, experts told ABC News, rejecting the notion that checkbook journalism is practiced across the board. the industry.
“It’s certainly not within the bounds of journalistic practice,” Jane Kirtley, a professor of media ethics and law at the University of Minnesota, told ABC News.
The so-called “catch and kill” scheme is particularly egregious, Kirtley added. “Journalists exist to report information, not suppress it,” she said.
In this January 19, 2012 file photo, David Pecker attends an event in Paris.
François Durand/Getty Images, FILE
The approach of paying news sources is widely condemned by media ethics organizations and mainstream media outlets.
The Society of Professional Journalists, a national organization representing journalists, condemned checkbook journalism in a statement Tuesday responding to testimony at the secret trial.
“This is clearly unethical,” SPJ national president Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins said in a statement.
Is it illegal to “catch and kill” news stories?
Although frowned upon by many in the field, checkbook journalism is perfectly legal — and that includes the “catch and kill” scheme involved in this case, experts said.
Instead, Trump is accused of falsifying business records as part of the deal to reimburse Cohen for secret payments to Daniels. According to prosecutors, Trump fraudulently recorded $130,000 in expenses for Cohen’s legal services.
“This is the business capital of the world,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said at a news conference announcing the charges last year. “The foundation, indeed the foundation, of business integrity and a well-functioning commercial marketplace is the keeping of truthful and accurate records.”
Prosecutors called Pecker to testify in part to support allegations that Trump played a role in the scheme involving the payments.
Checkbook journalism is protected by the First Amendment, John Watson, a journalism professor at American University who specializes in ethics, told ABC News, noting that the press has wide latitude in how and what it says. to publish.
“The First Amendment protects all kinds of expression, short of obscenity,” Watson said, while recognizing other exemptions for false and defamatory statements.
The legality of checkbook journalism, however, is a separate consideration from whether it is ethical, Chad Painter, a professor of media ethics at the University of Dayton, told ABC News.
“Ethics goes further than the law,” Painter said. “There are things that are perfectly legal but we’re still not going to do them — in terms of the media or ourselves as people.”
ABC News’ Aaron Katersky, Peter Charalambous, Olivia Rubin, Lucien Bruggeman and Julia Reinstein contributed to this report.
ABC News
