A federal election watchdog fined the publisher of the National Enquirer $187,500 for a payment it made to keep under wraps a story about former President Donald Trump’s alleged affair with a former Playboy model. The FEC fined A360 Media, formerly known as American Media, for paying Karen McDougal $150,000 in August 2016, saying the payment that was made to keep her story from becoming public before the presidential election in concert with an agent of Trump was an illegal campaign contribution. A message left for the publisher through its website was not returned.
