Bloomberg Reporter Fired Over Breaking Embargo On Evan Gershkovich's Release: Reports

Jennifer Jacobs, one of the two Bloomberg reporters who wrote the story that broke the embargo on Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovichs release from Russian prison, has been fired, according to several reports . 

Jacobs wrote on social media Monday that she worked hand in hand with editors and never did anything knowingly inconsistent with the administrations embargo.

Reports dont have the final say over when a story is published or with what headline, she added. The chain of events here could happen to any reporter tasked with reporting the news. This is why checks and balances exist within the editorial processes.

On Friday, New York Magazine reported that Bloomberg broke the embargo set by the White House by several hours when it published a story that Gershkovich was part of a prisoner swap. 

Officials, fearing Russia reversing the deal, asked news outlets to delay publishing until Gershkovich was officially off the plane. Gershkovich arrived in the U.S. late Thursday.

On Monday morning, John Micklethwait, Bloombergs editor-in-chief, reportedly sent staff an email saying that the news outlet has taken disciplinary action against a number of those involved in breaking the embargo. A Bloomberg spokesperson declined to comment.

Even if our story mercifully ended up making no difference, it was a clear violation of the editorial standards which have made this newsroom so trusted around the world, the email reads.

Micklethwait continued, writing that he wrote personal letters apologizing to the prisoners, as well as Emma Tucker, the editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal, which has been reporting on Gershkovichs detainment since March 2023.