In a piece published last week in the L.A. Times, Fortune magazine’s Washington bureau chief and Fox News analyst Nina Easton said she “would not write stories centering on [John] McCain‘s campaign, because her husband, Russ Schriefer, is plotting media strategy for McCain.”

But what about stories about the GOP’s newfound love for so-called “green politics,” one of which characterizes McCain this way:

Arizona Senator John McCain has long-supported measures to reduce global warming.

Shouldn’t Easton at least disclose that her husband is plotting media strategy for McCain that may or may not include getting journalists to characterize McCain as long-supporting measures to reduce global warming?

Not in a sidebar scenario, it appears. Says a spokesperson for Fortune: “The sidebar to the Schwarzenegger article was focused on several other public figures and in no way effects Fortune‘s [plan] not to have Easton cover the McCain campaign.”

EARLIER:

We’re still a tantalizing 37 days away from the launch of Condé Nast’s multimillion-dollar business magazine Portfolio, yet there may already be a controversy brewing. Matt Cooper, the former Time magazine writer who, along with Valerie Plame, was a central figure in the CIA leak case and Scooter Libby trial, is the magazine’s Washington editor. His wife, Mandy Grunwald, is a chief ad strategist in Hillary Clinton. Cooper tells the L.A. Times he expects to write about Clinton and “to acknowledge my wife works for Hillary … at least on Hillary-centric stories.”

Portfolio isn’t the only business magazine to have a potential conflict of interest problem. Fortune Washington bureau chief and Fox News analyst Nina Easton‘s husband, Russ Schriefer, is a media strategist for John McCain. She says she will not write about McCain, and will issue occasional disclaimers to tell FNC TV viewers about her indirect ties to McCain.