"New York Magazine Reporter Placed on Leave Due to Relationship with RFK Jr."

The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict,” Olivia Nuzzi said in a statement.

A star reporter who covered Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign has been placed on leave after admitting a relationship with a former reporting subject.

New York magazine said in a statement Thursday that its Washington correspondent, Olivia Nuzzi, had failed to disclose a "personal relationship" with an unnamed campaign subject while she was reporting on the 2024 election.

This was a violation of the outlet's standards on journalists declaring personal interests that could be seen to influence their coverage, it said.

New York magazine reporter on leave over relationship with RFK Jr.

“The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict,” Olivia Nuzzi said in a statement.

Image: Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Delivers Remarks In Phoenix, Arizona

A spokesperson said the former presidential candidate had only met the reporter once in his life.Rebecca Noble / Getty Images

Sept. 20, 2024, 6:35 AM GMT-3

By Patrick Smith

A star reporter who covered Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign has been placed on leave after admitting a relationship with a former reporting subject.

New York magazine said in a statement Thursday that its Washington correspondent, Olivia Nuzzi, had failed to disclose a "personal relationship" with an unnamed campaign subject while she was reporting on the 2024 election.

This was a violation of the outlet's standards on journalists declaring personal interests that could be seen to influence their coverage, it said.

Reporter Olivia Nuzzi arrives for the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, DC, April 29, 2023.

Olivia Nuzzi in 2023.Stefani Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images file

"Had the magazine been aware of this relationship, she would not have continued to cover the presidential campaign," the statement said. The magazine said that it reviewed her work, however, and found "no inaccuracies nor evidence of bias."

"She is currently on leave from the magazine, and the magazine is conducting a more thorough third-party review. We regret this violation of our readers’ trust," it added.

Nuzzi said in a statement to The New York Times on Thursday, without elaborating on the exact nature of their relationship, that "some communication between myself and a former reporting subject turned personal" earlier this year.

She said that despite having covered the subject previously she did not report on him directly during this time.

"The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict. I deeply regret not doing so immediately and apologize to those I’ve disappointed, especially my colleagues at New York," she said.

NBC News reached out to Nuzzi overnight for comment.

While neither Nuzzi or New York Magazine named the reporting subject, both CNN and the New York Times have reported that it was Kennedy.

Stefanie Spear, spokesperson for Kennedy, said in a short statement to NBC News that "Mr. Kennedy only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece."