Isn't there a contradiction in this NYT story? Doesn't it gut the whole rationale for the article?

There is this first sentence:

...Pentagon contractor that paid Iraqi newspapers to print positive articles written by American soldiers has also been compensating Sunni religious scholars in Iraq in return for assistance with its propaganda work, according to current and former employees.

But later in the article, there is this sentence:

Internal company financial records show that Lincoln spent about $144,000 on the program from May to September. It is unclear how much of this money, if any, went to the religious scholars, whose identities could not be learned. [emphasis added]

Ed Lasky  1 02 06