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→Silence on Pay-to-Play Allegations Highlights Conflicts of Interest: add internal link
[[John Menard]], owner of the Menard's chain of hardware stores, gave $1.5 million in previously unknown contributions to Wisconsin Club for Growth during the [[Scott_Walker#2012_Recall_Election|2012 Wisconsin recall election]], according to reporting by investigative journalist Michael Isikoff published March 23, 2015. Isikoff wrote that the contributions "seem to have paid off for the businessman and his company." Over the following two years, Menard's received $1.8 million in tax credits from the [[Scott_Walker#Wisconsin_Economic_Development_Corporation_Scandals|Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation]], which Walker chairs, and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources "sharply scaled back enforcement actions" under Walker.<ref>Michael Isikoff, "[https://www.yahoo.com/politics/wisconsin-gov-scott-walker-photo-charlie-114429739886.html Secret $1.5 million donation from Wisconsin billionaire uncovered in Scott Walker dark-money probe]," ''Yahoo Politics'', March 23, 2015.</ref> The story made national headlines, including coverage by ''The New York Times'', MSNBC, and ''U.S. News & World Report'' the day following its publication.<ref name="media matters menards">Daniel Angster, "[http://mediamatters.org/blog/2015/03/26/the-pay-to-play-allegation-walkers-watchdog-isn/203055 The Pay-To-Play Allegation Walker's Watchdog Isn't Defending]," ''Media Matters'', March 26, 2015.</ref>
[[Wisconsin Reporter]], which had previously defended O'Keefe and Wisconsin Club for Growth against allegations of improper coordination with Walker and his campaign, made no mention of the pay-to-play allegations in the days following Isikoff's story despite the national news coverage, according to ''Media Matters''. "Their silence on the story highlights the conflicts of interest that surround the outlet's reporting on Walker and the 'John Doe' investigations," ''Media Matters'' wrote.<ref name="media matters menards"/>
==Accusations of Inaccuracy & 'Manufactured News'==
