“THE CHARLES KEATING OF FLORIDA”

This chapter tests the narrative of Stan Strachan’s journalistic independence by examining how National Thrift News covered one of Strachan’s friends, David Paul, owner of the CenTrust Savings and Loan in Miami; Paul was sentenced to eleven years in prison on bank-fraud charges. This case illustrates the complex web of personal and professional connections between trade journalists and industry officials. Interviews and a content analysis show National Thrift News was not the leader of the David Paul coverage, but it still wrote critical articles about the editor’s friend, counter to the outcome predicted by the political economy theory. Strachan’s professional values as a journalist and the newspaper’s culture of accountability are possible explanations for the deviation.