Bankruptcy is a fascinating beat

Harry Jaffe of Washingtonian magazine profiles Washington Post personal finance reporter Michelle Singletary, who gained a lot of her business and economics reporting knowledge by covering bankruptcy court for the Baltimore Sun.

Jaffe writes, “After college, Singletary went to the Evening Sun. She covered zoning, then religion, then business. She learned a lot about bankruptcy.

“‘Bankruptcy is one of the most fascinating beats out there,’ she says. ‘You get to see everything.’

“Like Johnny Unitas’s dirty financial laundry. Checking filings at court in the late 1980s, she came upon the bankruptcy papers for the famous Baltimore Colts quarterback. She broke the story.

“The Post hired her in 1992 when many big companies were filing for bankruptcy. She broke the story of the bankruptcy of then Baltimore Orioles owner Eli Jacobs.“

Read more here.