Politico Denies Letting Clinton Aide Ghostwrite Item for Playbook Newsletter

Emails show former State Department spokesperson Philippe Reines sent DC reporter Mike Allen a blurb to include about a TV special

Mike Allen Politico

Despite recently released emails that suggest Politico allowed a Hillary Clinton aide to ghostwrite a section of its morning newsletter, the site denies any wrongdoing.

Emails recently obtained by Gawker that were exchanged in 2010 between Politico reporter Mike Allen and former State Department official Philippe Reines reveal the two discussed a news item that would appear in the site’s Playbook newsletter.

In the exchanges, Reines sent Allen a press alert for a National Geographic special on the State Department, and Allen followed up with a re-write for Reines’ approval.

“This National Geographic television special was worth flagging for Playbook readers and as such the information was condensed into our signature, bite-sized format with a link to the outside source,” a Politico spokesperson told TheWrap.

The final version of the news item ran on Nov. 8, 2010, complete with the changes requested by the former State Department official. Reines did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.

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