Marilyn W. Thompson, then the executive editor of the Lexington Herald-Leader in Kentucky, faced a problem last year that's afflicting more and more newspaper editors across the country: She wanted to initiate a major reporting project but lacked enough money to pay for it.

Thompson, who wanted the paper to take a deep look at Mitch McConnell, Kentucky's senior U.S. senator, a Republican, came up with an answer: She'd seek support from the Center for Investigative Reporting, a California-based nonprofit group that's financed or conducted groundbreaking work in television and print journalism.

The idea was approved by Thompson's bosses at Knight Ridder, which owned the Herald-Leader at the time. The center approved a $37,500 grant, and Herald-Leader reporter John Cheves went to work.

This week, with Cheves winding up a six-month examination of McConnell -- and the senator's staff raising questions about the unusual grant -- the Herald-Leader's new owner, McClatchy Co., came to a different conclusion. McClatchy acquired Knight Ridder in June.

... For Bob Steele, who teaches journalism ethics at the Poynter Institute in Florida and in newsrooms around the country, the decision to return the money was the right one.

"I would think that kind of specific funding by an organization with a direct stake in the players and the issues is ethically problematic," Steele said. "You can't erase the board here in its entirety because there's a history, but at least it's wise for McClatchy to say it's going to pay for the costs of doing this reporting."

CORRECTION: The original version of this item included an incorrect byline. (Oct. 17, 2006).
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