Retraction Watch has a piece by Times journalist Tracy Tullis, who reports that she told her Times editor she was a donor to People for Ethical Treatment of Animals before she was assigned an article about an elephant at the Bronx Zoo:
I also told him that I'd made small contributions over the years to various animal welfare organizations, including PETA, which is mentioned in the article. The ethics handbook cautions writers about financial donations too, but Ferguson didn't respond to that part of my email, which I assumed meant it wasn't an issue.