{
  "id": 7213918,
  "title": "Inside the US Treasury secretary’s tense relationship with financial media",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/inside-the-us-treasury-secretarys-tense-relationship-with-financial",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-14T00:49:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Semafor",
    "slug": "semafor",
    "url": "https://www.semafor.com/article/09/13/2026/inside-the-us-treasury-secretarys-tense-relationship-with-financial-media"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has been embroiled in a tense relationship with financial media for the past year. This conflict began in September when Bessent, who had a long history of appearing on Bloomberg News, called the reporters Anthony Cormier and Zachary Mider to express his fury over their planned article. The article was to report that Bessent had agreed to simultaneously occupy two houses as his principal residence, a move that aligned with Trump's strategy to justify firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Bessent threatened to cut off Bloomberg's access to the Treasury Department, including no more appearances on their TV programs, should they publish the story. Despite Bloomberg's decision to publish the article, Bessent followed through on his threat, ceasing appearances on Bloomberg Television. This marked the start of a pattern of dissatisfaction between Bessent and the press corps, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg. Bessent has been critical of their reporting, calling it \"tabloid trash\" and denouncing some reporters as \"pathetic\" and \"mendacious.\" In private, he has also complained personally about the coverage. The New York Times has reported that certain reporters from the NYT, Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg had not been granted press credentials for a recent G20 meeting, further fueling the tension between the powerful Cabinet secretary and the media covering him.",
  "summary": "Scott Bessent’s blacklist starts with Bloomberg.",
  "key_points": [
    "US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had a tense relationship with financial media for a year.",
    "Bessent threatened to cut off Bloomberg's access to the Treasury Department over a planned article."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The US Treasury secretary's strained relationship with financial media marks a shift in the typical dynamic between a high-ranking official and the press corps, limiting access and appearances.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}