Former Politico journalists Marc Caputo and Tara Palmeri have alleged that their previous employer deliberately suppressed unfavorable coverage related to Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, and the controversial Biden laptop incident during the 2020 presidential election. Both Caputo and Palmeri, experienced political reporters, revealed that Politico’s editorial management issued a specific instruction to refrain from reporting on the contentious laptop issue.
In October 2020, shortly before the U.S. presidential election, Emma-Jo Morris of the New York Post published an article claiming that Hunter Biden, the son of then-candidate Joe Biden, had abandoned a laptop at a computer repair shop in Delaware. This laptop allegedly contained emails indicating that Hunter had facilitated a meeting between his father and a Ukrainian businessman associated with Burisma, the energy company where Hunter held a board position. These emails prompted inquiries into possible conflicts of interest and corruption.
“I was covering Biden at the time, and I remember approaching my editor and stating that we needed to address the Hunter Biden laptop,” Caputo recounted on Thursday. “I was informed that the directive came from higher-ups at Politico: ‘Do not write about the laptop, do not discuss the laptop, and do not tweet about the laptop.’ The only coverage Politico ultimately provided was a piece labeling it as disinformation, which could at best be described as misinformation.”
Palmeri supported Caputo’s narrative, sharing her own difficulties in reporting on the Biden family. “I conducted significant reporting on Hunter Biden, which ultimately contributed to his prosecution—the story regarding the gun,” Palmeri stated. “I dedicated three months to it. I visited the laptop repair shop and conducted thorough reporting in Delaware. However, it had to be completely verified. I had all the evidence—the police reports. I consider myself a diligent reporter, but I do question whether those various stories might have been published more promptly.” Caputo also discussed a story he had written concerning a tax lien against.
I composed what could have been regarded as a classic narrative, indicating that the son of the former vice president faced a substantial tax lien related to his employment with a contentious Ukrainian oil or natural gas company, which continues to affect his father’s campaign efforts.
In 2020, the narrative surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop was swiftly challenged. More than 50 former intelligence officials endorsed a letter asserting that the dissemination of the purported emails exhibited “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation,” although they conceded the absence of direct evidence linking Russia to the situation. This prompted significant media skepticism and resulted in limited coverage of the issue.
Social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, implemented measures to curtail the dissemination of the New York Post article, citing concerns regarding potential misinformation and the origins of the material. For example, Twitter temporarily restricted users from sharing links to the article, invoking its policy against the distribution of hacked content.
In the subsequent months, forensic examinations verified the authenticity of certain emails from the laptop, confirming that the device indeed belonged to Hunter. Ultimately, Joe Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president.
