Harlem Council Candidate Paid Blogger For Favorable Coverage

HARLEM, NY — A West Harlem City Council candidate is one of several uptown politicians whose campaigns paid a local blogger in exchange for favorable coverage, according to public disclosures and a media report.

A campaign committee for Shaun Abreu, the Democratic nominee for City Council in District 7, made three payments totaling $750 to blogger Jose Zabala between December 2020 and May of this year for "promotion," according to campaign finance filings.

Those payments coincided with frequent mentions of Abreu on Zabala's Spanish-language blog, Zabala al Día, which is devoted in part to Dominican readers in Upper Manhattan.

The pattern was first reported Monday by the nonprofit news outlet THE CITY, which documented similar payments to Zabala by U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat and Council candidates Carmen De La Rosa and Pierina Sánchez, as well as Abreu. In all cases, the payments appeared to be legal, the outlet reported, though they take advantage of a gray area that allows for paid promotions with few disclosures.

In a Dec. 21, 2020 post, Zabala highlighted Abreu as one of several "young Dominicans" who were "positioning themselves as favorites" in their respective City Council races.

Citing an unspecified poll, Zabala said Abreu was the favorite to win the District 7 race — a notable prediction to make six months before the primary, in which Abreu ultimately defeated 11 other candidates. The $250 payment from Abreu's campaign was made the same day as the Dec. 21 post.

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An April 12 post, which also coincided with a $250 payment, was headlined in Spanish: "Congressman Ritchie Torres reiterates support for attorney Shaun Abreu," going on to describe a press conference about conditions in public housing that both men attended.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Abreu's campaign said the payments to Zabala "provided services related to communication and outreach to our Spanish-speaking community."

City campaign finance law only requires campaigns to include a notice in paid advertisements if the campaign wrote or co-wrote the script, THE CITY reported. While legal, the arrangement may prompt ethical concerns in an era where online influencers wield increasing power in politics.

Abreu, like the other candidates, was supported by Espaillat during his primary. Zabala named Espaillat in more than 400 articles since Espaillat was elected to Congress in 2016, and the congressman has sent the blogger more than $3,200 since last year, THE CITY reported.

The payments are not exclusive to Espaillat's camp, however. State Sen. Robert Jackson, a former rival of Espaillat's, likewise sent payments to Zabala as far back as 2018.

Abreu, 30, is a tenants' rights attorney and former community board member running to succeed Mark Levine in the District 7 seat, which also covers parts of the Upper West Side, Morningside Heights, Hamilton Heights and Washington Heights. He is heavily favored to win the Nov. 2 general election, where he will face independent challengers Jomo R. Williams and Carmen R. Quinones.

Related coverage: Rep. Espaillat Campaign Paid Thousands To Online Influencers Who Delivered Flattering Posts