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- Nicole Shanahan proposed $500,000 to a journalist in exchange for revealing their sources, according to The Washington Post.
- Shanahan previously served as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s running mate before they both withdrew and endorsed Donald Trump.
- The Washington Post continued its coverage of Shanahan despite her alleged financial offer.
Nicole Shanahan, who was once the running mate of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., reportedly offered a substantial sum of $500,000 to a reporter in an attempt to “uncover individuals she claimed were disseminating false information about her,” as detailed by The Washington Post.
This past Wednesday, the newspaper released an article profiling Shanahan—a 39-year-old attorney from California and founder of ClearAccessIP and the Bia-Echo Foundation—who is also known for being the former spouse of Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
During the investigative process, it came to light that Shanahan learned one of her associates had been contacted by the publication regarding its story. In June, she texted this associate with a request: “Please let them know I’m offering half a million dollars for whistleblower information regarding those who have wronged me,” according to reports from the outlet.
The specific identity of the reporter whom Shanahan approached remains unclear; however, Ashley Parker—Senior National Political Correspondent at The Washington Post—shared details about this offer on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.
“When we started our investigation into Nicole Shanahan’s background, she proposed $500,000 for us to act as ‘whistleblowers’ and reveal our sources,” Parker stated on X while linking back to their article. “We declined but proceeded with our profile.”
Business Insider reached out for comments from Shanahan regarding The Washington Post’s findings but did not receive any response from her team.
At that time when reporters were making inquiries about her activities, she was actively campaigning alongside Kennedy Jr. until they both stepped down in August and subsequently endorsed Donald Trump.
An associate informed The Washington Post about her monetary proposal; however, it appears that no response was given by the reporter involved at that moment.
After several months attempting to get feedback from Shanahan concerning their story’s content, when they finally received communication from her side she disputed some aspects without elaborating further on those claims. According to reports:
“I regret you believe it’s acceptable behavior driven by political agendas,” said Shanahan in response. “It reflects poorly on where our nation stands today.”
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