Agreed. On the surface, this article looks like nothing more than a reporter coming up with their own conclusions...so no different than most air operators!
The fact that Ms. Redford paid back the money it cost the government to have her daughter travel with her, in my opinion, does not constitute "hire and reward." It is certainly not "revenue" as the reporter claims.
I put this into the same category as a reporter uncovering a rock, finding a worm, and coming to the conclusion that the Department of Agriculture is using worms to destroy crops in order to do...something.