MarketWatch's Bambi Francisco resigns
<b style="color:#900;">blog</b> Veteran columnist leaves Dow Jones-owned financial news site in wake of questions regarding her start-up venture with PayPal co-founder.
Dow Jones on Friday accepted the resignation of MarketWatch columnist Bambi Francisco, according to a brief statement released by the company.
Bambi Francisco
The move follows a CNET News.com story Thursday which raised questions about Francisco's business relationship with startup Vator.tv and one of the company's investors, Peter Thiel, the co-founder of PayPal, who now runs two investment firms.
Dow Jones forbids employees from investing in companies and industries they write about, according to a Friday report in The Wall Street Journal, which, like MarketWatch, is also owned by Dow Jones.
"Dow Jones demands the highest journalism standards at our own publications and services, as reflected by our strict Code of Conduct," said L. Gordon Crovitz, executive vice president of Dow Jones. "Our MarketWatch reporter Bambi Francisco started Vator.tv on her own time with our approval, under certain guidelines on permitted areas of coverage. Bambi has decided to pursue her enterprise full time."
An updated story with more details can be found here.