New York mag puts reporter Olivia Nuzzi on leave for alleged 'personal relationship' with RFK Jr.
Nuzzi releases statement apologizing for not disclosing 'personal' relationship earlier, says it was 'never physical'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}New York magazine placed reporter Olivia Nuzzi on leave Thursday night after an internal probe found "she had engaged in a personal relationship" with a key figure in the 2024 presidential race, reportedly former candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
"Nuzzi acknowledged to the magazine’s editors that she had engaged in a personal relationship with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign while she was reporting on the campaign, a violation of the magazine’s standards around conflicts of interest and disclosures," New York magazine said in a statement.
Nuzzi, the magazine’s Washington correspondent, has done several high-profile interviews while covering the presidential election. Among them was Kennedy, who she wrote a feature on late last year.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nuzzi on Thursday night released a statement, saying she never had a physical relationship with her former reporting subject but did engage in "personal" communications with them. She did not name Kennedy.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - AUGUST 23: Former Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gives remarks at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel on August 23, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona.Kennedy announced that he was suspending his presidential campaign and supporting Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump.(Photo by Rebecca Noble/Getty Images) (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
"Earlier this year, the nature of some communication between myself and a former reporting subject turned personal," she said. "I did not directly report on the subject nor use them as a source. The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict. I deeply regret not doing so immediately and apologize to those I've disappointed, especially my colleagues at New York."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Kennedy spokesperson also denied any sort of physical relationship and said he had only met Nuzzi once.
"Mr. Kennedy only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece," a Kennedy spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
The magazine said in its statement that Nuzzi would have been removed from her reporting duties on the campaign if it had been made aware of the relationship.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Had the magazine been aware of this relationship, she would not have continued to cover the presidential campaign. An internal review of her published work has found no inaccuracies nor evidence of bias," New York magazine said.
"She is currently on leave from the magazine, and the magazine is conducting a more thorough third-party review," the statement continued. "We regret this violation of our readers’ trust."
Status, a recently launched media blog, reported that the person she allegedly engaged in a relationship with was Kennedy, who is married to actress Cheryl Hines. Kennedy suspended his campaign last month and endorsed former President Trump.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"She did not proactively disclose her alleged relationship with Kennedy to New York magazine and the outlet only recently learned of it, according to people familiar with the matter. The alleged relationship did not begin until after a November 2023 profile she wrote on Kennedy had been published, a person close to Nuzzi said. The person close to Nuzzi added that she did not use Kennedy as a source while covering the 2024 campaign," Status reported.
NEW YORK MAG REPORTER DEFENDS TIMING OF BIDEN ‘CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE’ BOMBSHELL AMID BACKLASH
Reporter Olivia Nuzzi arrives for the White House Correspondents' Association dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, DC, April 29, 2023. (STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
Nuzzi did not respond to a request for additional comment.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}New York magazine declined additional comment when asked about the Kennedy report.
Nuzzi recently made headlines when Bloomberg allegedly scrapped major promotion of her six-episode interview series called "Working Capital," after left-wing backlash stemming from a damning report she authored about President Biden.
The story on Biden before he exited the 2024 race delved into his mental decline and the "conspiracy of silence" around him to stop it from becoming public knowledge. Biden dropped out shortly after Nuzzi's report was published and Democratic Party pressure increased on the president.
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Earlier this month, she penned a profile of Trump in the wake of the assassination attempt against him in July.
This report was updated with statements from Nuzzi and the Kennedy campaign.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.