Source: REUTERS
A New York Times reporter is under fire after making a bold claim about what qualifies as corruption in the context of President Donald Trump’s personal business ventures and their intersection with global influence.
Eric Lipton, an investigative reporter at The New York Times, co-authored a new article that explores how Trump and his family have embraced cryptocurrency-related business dealings—ventures that critics argue could expose them to foreign influence campaigns. Lipton called these ties “potentially corrupt” but then drew a line in the sand about what, in his view, legally counts as corruption.
“Corruption requires explicit quid pro quo,” Lipton wrote on Bluesky. “It is not corrupt to take an action that aligns with the interest of a person who gives you a gift, unless the official action was in direct response to that gift—a bribe. Terms matter. Accuracy and fairness matters. Regardless of what social media wants.”
The backlash was swift and widespread.
“You can’t just have the world’s worst understanding of a thing then yell at social media about it,” posted attorney Jesse Taylor.
“This is not true either legally or in a colloquial sense, but an NYT reporter says it like he’s telling you the weather,” wrote a user known as Peter.
Ryan Cooper, managing editor of The American Prospect, added: “Tacit corruption can easily be worse because it’s more deniable and a lot more lucrative.”
Others pointed out that if journalists held themselves to the same standard, Lipton’s logic would not hold.
“If a powerful journalist solicited and accepted a free car from someone they were reporting on, without any explicit quid pro quo, we would surely recognize that as corruption,” said Eric Columbus, special litigation counsel for the U.S. House of Representatives’ Office of General Counsel.
“Corruption does not require explicit quid pro quo—it’s simply abuse of entrusted power for gain,” added lawyer David Sugerman. “You’re misreading the law.”
“This may actually be the dumbest statement I’ve ever seen an intelligent person make,” wrote Michael Planey, a managing consultant and engineer.
Bluesky user Ashley Fairbanks mocked the legalistic take: “It’s not corruption unless it’s grown in the corruption region of France, anything else is just sparkling bribery.”
As the debate rages, critics say Lipton’s take risks minimizing what many Americans instinctively recognize as unethical behavior—even if it’s not technically illegal.
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