Case Study: Stephanopoulos’ Gifts to Clinton Foundation
In his early 30s, George Stephanopoulos achieved prominence as communications director for Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign for the White House. After serving as a key adviser in the new president’s first term, he left in 1996 to teach government at Columbia University. He also started doing political commentary for ABC, and in 2002 the network chose him to host its political program “This Week.” In time he added the titles of ABC’s chief political correspondent and co-host of “Good Morning America.” Moving from political operative to reporter isn’t easy, but Stephanopoulos navigated the transition seamlessly.
However, Stephanopoulos’ credibility as a journalist was undermined in May 2015 when Politico and a conservative website, Washington Free Beacon, disclosed that he had given $50,000 to the Clinton Foundation, the charity run by Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton. He had not informed ABC of the donation, as network rules required, nor had he informed ABC viewers. Stephanopoulos later amended the total of his contributions to $75,000 – gifts of $25,000 a year in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
Twice Stephanopoulos apologized on air, on “Good Morning America” on May 15 and on “This Week” on May 17. “Over the last several years I’ve made substantial donations to dozens of charities, including the Clinton Foundation,” Stephanopoulos said. “Those donations were a matter of public record, but I should have made additional disclosures on air when we covered the foundation. I now believe that direct and personal donations to that foundation were a mistake. Even though I made them to support work done to stop the spread of AIDS, help children, and protect the environment I poor countries, I should have gone the extra mile to avoid even the appearance of a conflict. I apologize to all of you for failing to do that.”
ABC News stood behind its star. “He’s admitted to an honest mistake and apologized for that omission,” a network statement said.
The conflict issue was underscored by the fact that, on April 26, 2015, Stephanopoulos conducted an adversarial interview of Peter Schweizer, author of Clinton Cash, a book critical of the foundation. In an interview on CNN, Schweizer said the revelation of the contributions “put the interview at least in my mind in a totally different context,” adding: “I don’t mind tough questions, but you wonder what’s the motivation.”
As Stephanopoulos came under criticism from Republicans, he decided not to moderate a Republican presidential primary debate. But he continued to cover the 2016 presidential campaign.
Sources
Byers, Dylan, “George Stephanopoulos discloses $75,000 contribution to Clinton Foundation,” Politico, May 14, 2015.
Farhi, Paul, “ABC News’s Stephanopoulos donated $75,000 to Clinton Foundation,” The Washington Post, May 14, 2015.
Peters, Jeremy W., “George Stephanopoulos’s gifts to Clinton Foundation reinforce G.O.P. doubts,” The New York Times, May 14, 2005. “Conservatives have a long list of grievances against Mr. Stephanopoulos dating back to when the American public first caught a glimpse of him as a scruffy caffeine-addicted and fiercely partisan strategist for Bill Clinton in ‘The War Room,’ a documentary about the 1992 campaign.”
Polman, Dick, “George Stephanopoulos crosses the moveable line,” Newsworks, May 15, 2015.
Stelter, Brian, “Stephanopoulos seeks to move past Clinton donations scandal,” CNN, May 15, 2015.
Warren, James, “George Stephanopoulos’ donations to Clinton hurt his credibility,” Poynter, May 15, 2015.
De Moreas, Lisa, “Stephanopoulos apologizes again for Clinton Foundation donations,” Deadline Hollywood, May 17, 2015.
CNN “Reliable Sources,” “ABC anchor scrutinized for Clinton donations,” transcript of May 17, 2015, program including Brian Stelter’s interview with Peter Schweizer.