Corporate footprint in Washington is immense, says ex-NY Times reporter

Leslie Wayne is the first Reynolds Visiting Professor in Business Journalism at ASU's Cronkite School.

Lobbying is an honorable profession, but journalists have to be mindful that corporate lobbyists are representing the interests of their clients, former New York Times reporter Leslie Wayne said Monday. 

“It’s just that they are engaged in a system where the money is tilted so far on their side that lobbyists for smaller groups or those who have a different point of view have a harder time getting heard,” said Wayne. 

At a lecture series organized by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Wayne spoke to students about covering big business and its influence on government. 

Wayne, a former veteran reporter for The New York Times, covered Wall Street, military contractors, municipal finance and campaign finance during presidential election years for almost 30 years. She is the first Donald W. Reynolds Visiting Professor in Business Journalism at Arizona State University. 

“The corporate footprint in Washington is really an immense footprint,” said Wayne. 

Wayne pointed out that journalists should not only look to lobbyists for stories, but also be mindful of personal relationships, investments that members of Congress have in corporations, and campaign money raised by corporate America. 

Lobbyists are able to use money to buy access in Washington and to get doors opened, Wayne told students. 

Wayne shared the story of a series she wrote about a ski junket in Vail to illustrate the point. Banking lobbyists were able to give $3,000 to the Republican National Committee, and they were invited to go skiing with members of Congress who were going to be deciding on banking legislation. 

The banking lobbyists were able to stay at the same hotel, eat at the same restaurants and hang out on the slopes with the heads of the banking committees in Washington. 

“We got their agenda, and we followed them on the slopes, reporting on all the face time the banking lobbyists had with members of Congress,” said Wayne. 

Even though most of America is angry at the banking industry, when you wonder why there is no significant reform—look at the lobbying influence, she said. 

While some influence can appear obvious, some corporate influence is subtler and more nuanced—especially when it involves military contractors. 

Wayne spoke of the “Iron Triangle” which refers to members of Congress who want to maintain weapons systems even in the face of the Pentagon, which often wants to cut those same systems. 

Building contractors are very strategic in parceling out large military projects into all kinds of districts; a given weapons system may be built in 40 different states.  This way members of Congress will vote for the weapons to keep jobs in those states even if the weapons are outmoded or no longer relevant. 

Wayne said the F-22 is a good example of this kind of corporate influence that then impacts the Pentagon. 

“Foreign military contractors are now getting in the same game,” said Wayne. 

Another major area of corporate influence is campaign finance, which has changed significantly with the Internet, Wayne said. 

Members of Congress are engaged in a system where they have to rely on public and corporate money to stay in office, said Wayne. 

In the most recent presidential election between John McCain and Barack Obama, both candidates had been decrying special interests in Washington, but engaged in a $5 billion election. Wayne pointed out that this amount alone would place the election itself within the largest Fortune 500 companies in America. 

Barack Obama became the first candidate to reject the $84 million in public funds available to each candidate in a presidential race. Yet, he still raised more than McCain with $750 million versus McCain’s $350 million. 

About half of Obama’s money came from the Internet in small donations. 

“We’ll see how that plays out over time, and whether it will change the tenor of politics,” said Wayne. 

When it comes to covering campaign finance for the upcoming midterm elections, journalists need to look no further than their own doorsteps, Wayne said. 

She advised journalists looking for stories to get to know fundraisers, talk to people who are raising money, get invited to a fundraiser, talk to donors and especially find leading donors. 

“But don’t forget to connect the dots in a larger way; don’t get bogged down in the minutiae,” said Wayne.