Fox Biz readies lawsuit against Treasury

TALKING BIZ NEWS EXCLUSIVE

Talking Biz News has learned that Fox Business Network is about to file a lawsuit in the Federal Court of New York, suing the U.S. Treasury Department for failure to respond to requests filed under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

The FOIA requests were seeking information on the details of the bailout fund allocations for Citigroup, AIG and Bank of New York Mellon.

Last month, the business news channel filed a Freedom of Information request with the Federal Reserve Bank to get information about its $2 trillion worth of loans to banks to ease the financial crisis. Bloomberg News filed a lawsuit to get the same information.

Fox Business is expected to announce details on the filing of this lawsuit Thursday afternoon. More details will be posted as we get them.

UPDATE 3:30 p.m. EST: Fox Business is asking for the Treasury Department to identify, among other issues, the troubled assets purchased, any collateral extended, and any restrictions placed on these financial institutions for their participation in this program.Â

Kevin Magee, executive vice president, Fox News, said in a statement: “The Treasury has repeatedly ignored our requests for information on how the government is allocating money to these troubled institutions. In a critical time like this amidst mounting corruptions and an economic crisis, we as a news organization feel it’s more important than ever to hold the government accountable.”

Steven Mintz, of Mintz & Gold LLP, and legal counsel for the network, added, “Despite the several requests for expedited information filed by FBN, it has become apparent that the Treasury will not cooperate without mounting legal pressure. Therefore, we have filed a complaint in the Federal Court in New York and ask the Court to make the Treasury provide the information sought by the journalists at FBN.”