In the wake of The New York Times scoop on Walmart’s alleged bribery of Mexican officials, Felix Salmon of Reuters suggests that it would not have been unethical for the Times to make money on the story by selling it to hedge funds a day before publication. -db From a commentary for Reuters, April 24, 2012, by Felix Salmon. Full story
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is suing the Securities Exchange Commission for documents requested under the Freedom of Information Act showing what the SEC is doing to improve detection and enforcement on financial fraud. CREW submitted the FOIA request to the SEC in June but has received no documents on their request. -db From The Hill, October 13, 2011, by Peter Schroeder. Full story
A Colorado federal judge denied the request of a Denver attorney for the identities of SEC employees caught viewing pornographic websites during working hours. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 9, 2010 By Christine Beckett The names and job descriptions of Securities and Exchange Commission employees who were caught viewing pornography at work will remain a secret, a federal district judge ruled Tuesday in Colorado. Denver attorney Kevin Evans requested the
In a move to create transparency and accountability, the House and Senate voted to repeal provision allowing the Securities and Exchange Commission to deny requests under the Freedom of Information Act. -db CNNMoney.com September 23, 2010 By Ben Rooney NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Lawmakers moved Thursday to repeal a provision in the financial reform law that shields the Securities and Exchange Commission from requests under the Freedom of Information Act. The provision had allowed the
The Security and Exchange Commission has subpoenaed documents from two whistle blowers including e-mails with reporters, a move that circumvents their usual policy of not subpoenaing reporters directly. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press June 28, 2010 By Ellen Biltz At least one government agency is using subpoenas to target e-mail between journalists and potential sources by going after the source. Two self-proclaimed fraud convicts recently turned over thousands of documents rather