Vicki Iseman

Vicki L. Iseman (born 1967) is an American lobbyist working for the firm Iseman & Szelinga. As a lobbyist for the firm Alcalde & Fay she gained national media attention in February 2008, and again in May 2022, due to her involvement in the John McCain lobbyist controversy.

Personal A native of Indiana, Pennsylvania, Vicki Iseman graduated in 1985 from the Homer-Center High School, where she was a cheerleader and a member of the student council. She went on to attend the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, graduating with a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education in 1990. In 2006, she delivered the commencement address at her old high school, Her family still lives in Indiana County, where she is recalled as a "hometown girl who made good". She is also known for her work for the telecommunications industry, In the course of hearings on communications bills in 1992 and 1996 which eventually led to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, she argued that cable TV should have to carry broadcast television.

Lawsuit against The New York Times In December 2008, Iseman filed a US$27 million defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, alleging that the paper, in the course of describing circumstances of her lobbying activity, had falsely implied an illicit romantic relationship between her and Senator John McCain. The Times said they "fully stood behind the article" and the story was "true and accurate".

The suit was subsequently settled without payment in February 2009. As part of the settlement, Ms. Iseman accepted the Times’ explanation, which appeared in a "Note to Readers" published in the newspaper. The "Note to Readers" said: "The article did not state, and The Times did not intend to conclude, that Ms. Iseman had engaged in a romantic affair with Senator McCain or an unethical relationship on behalf of her clients in breach of the public trust."

The article that prompted the lawsuit was published on February 21, 2008. McCain's presidential campaign called the article "a hit-and-run smear campaign" and "gutter politics." This confession occurred after he and the campaign had already disputed the claims published in The New York Times. "Ultimately, John McCain's lie became mine," Schmidt said. On May 9, 2022, The Times stated that Schmidt lied about McCain's romantic involvement with the female lobbyist in order to discredit The Times article and protect his client's reputation,