In fiscal year 2011, federal government contracts with Capitol News Company, the owner of Politico, totaled $41,900. In fiscal year 2014, twenty-eight contracts were signed with sixteen departments or agencies totaling $431,800, as THE WEEKLY STANDARD reported last year.

It’s all perfectly legal and all perfectly disturbing. Politico, the court scribe of the imperial federal government, has been very, very successful in selling subscriptions to a wide variety of federal agencies for its paid information service, Politico Pro. Jeryl Bier of The Weekly Standard describes P.P. as “the go-to publication to keep abreast of information and developments relating to a wide spectrum of policy and politics” and chronicles the amazing success of Politico’s parent company in peddling it to taxpayer-funded agencies.

While I applaud the economizing with the WaPo and NYT, I wonder what it is that Politico supplies that is so very valuable to the feds. And the spectacle of government payments to media just does not sit right.

The New York Times shows a similar drop off, going from $97,000 in 2010 to zero in 2014 , 2015 and 2016.

By contrast, the Washington Post received over $600,000 in contracts in 2008 . By 2011 , this had fallen to $215,000. For fiscal 2015 , government records actually show a credit of $3,523 due from the Post.

While Politico prospers, other entities selling subscriptions to the feds are not doing nearly as well:

The last complete fiscal year, 2015 , eighteen departments or agencies signed 50 different agreements for a grand total of $710,044, a 64 percent increase over 2014.

It’s all perfectly legal and all perfectly disturbing. Politico, the court scribe of the imperial federal government, has been very, very successful in selling subscriptions to a wide variety of federal agencies for its paid information service, Politico Pro. Jeryl Bier of The Weekly Standard describes P.P. as “the go-to publication to keep abreast of information and developments relating to a wide spectrum of policy and politics” and chronicles the amazing success of Politico’s parent company in peddling it to taxpayer-funded agencies.

In fiscal year 2011, federal government contracts with Capitol News Company, the owner of Politico, totaled $41,900. In fiscal year 2014, twenty-eight contracts were signed with sixteen departments or agencies totaling $431,800, as THE WEEKLY STANDARD reported last year. The last complete fiscal year, 2015, eighteen departments or agencies signed 50 different agreements for a grand total of $710,044, a 64 percent increase over 2014.

While Politico prospers, other entities selling subscriptions to the feds are not doing nearly as well:

By contrast, the Washington Post received over $600,000 in contracts in 2008. By 2011, this had fallen to $215,000. For fiscal 2015, government records actually show a credit of $3,523 due from the Post.

And:

The New York Times shows a similar drop off, going from $97,000 in 2010 to zero in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

While I applaud the economizing with the WaPo and NYT, I wonder what it is that Politico supplies that is so very valuable to the feds. And the spectacle of government payments to media just does not sit right.

Hat tip: Instapundit