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Bloomberg Issues Correction
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Bloomberg Issues Correction

Let’s talk about a recent blunder that has the media and social media buzzing. Bloomberg News found itself in hot water after publishing an article that was supposed to be a glowing profile of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. However, the piece included a significant error that only added fuel to the ongoing controversy surrounding Walz’s military record.

Here’s what happened: The article, titled “Walz’s Holy Trinity of Normal: Coach, Teacher, Veteran,” was published shortly after Kamala Harris announced Walz as her running mate for the 2024 presidential election. In this piece, Bloomberg Businessweek correspondent Joshua Green mentioned Walz’s military career, claiming that he had deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).

Now, this is where things went off the rails. OEF refers to the campaign in Afghanistan, not Iraq, which was known as Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). What’s more, Walz never actually deployed to Iraq. According to numerous reports, he took a conditional promotion to Command Sergeant Major but retired shortly after learning that his unit was set to deploy to Iraq. Instead, Walz’s only overseas deployment was a brief assignment in Italy in support of OEF, but he never saw combat.

Marine Corps veteran and The Daily Caller’s editor-in-chief Geoff Ingersoll was quick to point out these inaccuracies, questioning whether Green had been misled by Walz or if it was simply a reporting error. Ingersoll tweeted, “Wow, this is wild. (Also OEF was Afghanistan, NOT Iraq.) Walz should be forced to confirm or deny whether he misled Bloomberg’s @JoshuaGreen, who is still reporting to this day that Walz did a tour in Iraq. And Green should come out and say whether he was misled. This is false then and it’s false now.”

Bloomberg did eventually correct the article, noting at the top of the page that it had been updated to reflect the accurate information. Green also took to social media, posting a correction and taking responsibility for the mistake, admitting that Walz served in Italy, not Iraq.

But why did this story explode so quickly? The reason is that this isn’t the first time Walz has faced accusations of embellishing his military service. Critics have long pointed to his claims about carrying “weapons of war” during his time in the Army as misleading, especially when he uses these experiences to advocate for policies like assault weapons bans. Even CNN has fact-checked Walz on these comments, clarifying that while he served during a time of war, there is no evidence that he was ever in a combat situation where he was under fire.

Written by Arthur Higgens - August 8, 2024