ProPublica Revises Ethics Policy to Ban Betting on Prediction Markets

ProPublica has updated its newsroom code of ethics to prohibit any employee from wagering on the outcome of news events in prediction markets, regardless of whether the staff member is involved in covering the story. The change follows growing partnerships between prediction‑market platforms and news organizations – such as Kalshi with CNN, Fox News and the Associated Press, and Polymarket with Dow Jones – and a series of troubling incidents, including a U.S. soldier allegedly earning $400,000 by betting on the Venezuelan coup, political candidates fined for trading on their own races, and a journalist receiving threats from gamblers.

The new rule aims to preserve reader trust by preventing real or perceived conflicts of interest, while allowing low‑stakes participation in traditional sports pools that are unlikely to affect editorial impartiality.