Dallas paper names new DC biz reporter

Dallas Morning News Washington bureau chief Todd Gilman and business editor Dennis Fulton sent out the following announcement:

We are pleased to announce that Michael Lindenberger will join the Washington bureau as our new government and business reporter. Michael is a stellar reporter who has covered transportation for The Dallas Morning News since 2007. He’ll start after wrapping up a Knight Journalism Fellowship at Stanford University in June.

Trained as an attorney, Michael has put his formidable analytical skills to use exposing waste and management lapses at TxDOT, NTTA and DART. His coverage of lax ethics at the tollway authority prompted sweeping changes, and earned a Philbin Award from the Dallas Bar Association and a Pulitzer nomination from the DMN. After an initial two-year stint at The News, he covered state affairs for The Courier-Journal in his native Kentucky for four years before returning in 2007.

His new beat will be challenging: tracking influence, exploring the intersection of government and Texas business interests in Congress, within regulatory agencies, in the tax code and across the legal system. More generally, he’ll explain how federal decisions affect Texans’ lives and fortunes. Please join us in wishing him well.

In a separate email to Talking Biz News, Fulton writes, “He started July 1, but spent his first month in Dallas to bond with the business reporters and get to know some local companies.”