> two moderately paid journalists

"Peter Eleftherios Baker (born July 2, 1967) is an American journalist and author. He is the chief White House correspondent for The New York Times and a political analyst for MSNBC, and was previously a reporter for The Washington Post for 20 years."

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Baker_(journalist)

I don't know what he's paid, but I doubt it's anywhere near the median for journalists, for US workers, or for the NYTimes.