Reuters first with key details of new bailout package for AIG

Reuters was alone on November 7 in reporting key details of the plan to pour more money into troubled insurer AIG. A source told Reuters the government was looking into buying several billion dollars of preferred shares from AIG and possibly acquiring billions more of bonds guaranteed by the insurer in its CDS portfolio. Reuters also reported that the government could also set up a vehicle to buy residential mortgage-backed securities from AIG`s securities lending portfolio and it could also reduce the interest rate and increase the term of the existing loan to five years. Bloomberg did not have the story, while Dow/WSJ only had part of the story. On November 10, the restructured bailout was announced, including all the key aspects of the proposals outlined by Reuters at the end of the previous week.