The top editor of Forbes, Randall Lane, was fired last month after it was reported that he accepted $6 million from the founder of a firm that does business with the magazine. Lane had been the editor and chief content officer of Forbes since 2017 and had worked for the company for nearly 16 years.

Payment and Firing

The New York Times reported that Lane was paid by RJ Shook, whose company, Shook Research, worked with Forbes to publish rankings of wealth advisers. The payment was made after Shook sold a majority stake in the company to a private equity firm a year ago.

Lane considered the payment a gift in return for advice he had provided Shook over the years. However, traditional newsrooms typically forbid journalists from accepting payments from sources or business partners to avoid conflicts of interest.

Forbes’ Editorial Values

Forbes’ statement of editorial values and standards prohibits staff members and contributors from accepting compensation, privileges, or favors of any kind from people, companies, or groups featured in their coverage. The company requires that any real or perceived conflicts of interest or relationships be avoided and/or discussed with the appropriate managing editor.

Lane said in a statement that he made a mistake and takes responsibility for it. He expressed regret for not disclosing the gift and acknowledged that it was a serious error in judgment.

Original reporting: Alexandria, VA News – WTOP News — read the source article.