"Scripps Howard News Service announced Jan. 13 that it's severing its business relationship with columnist Michael Fumento [1], who's also a senior fellow at the conservative Hudson Institute [2]. The move comes after inquiries from BusinessWeek Online about payments Fumento received [3] from agribusiness giant Monsanto [4] -- a frequent subject of praise in Fumento's opinion columns and a book." Scripps Howard general manager Peter Copeland said Fumento "did not tell SHNS editors, and therefore we did not tell our readers, that in 1999 Hudson received a $60,000 grant from Monsanto." The grant was for Fumento's book BioEvolution. Fumento called himself "extremely pro-biotech" and said he told Monsanto about the book, "The biotech industry is going to look really good, and you should contribute." Fumento said his recent columns, including a January 5 piece praising new Monsanto products, were not "quid pro quo." He added, "I think there's a statute of limitations on that."