Friday, April 22, 2005

Dog Bites Dog: I'm sure you saw this link on Drudge about the 60 Minutes producer who tried to use his press credentials to get a discount on a family vacation in Hawaii. It was reported by a columnist at the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and then spread nation wide by Drudge.

What I like about that is it could signal a trend of news organizations becoming a watchdog on each other. Too often, the news media turns a blind eye to colleagues in the business. Sure, The New York Post will make fun of The New York Times, and Jim Romenesko has his selection of media mishaps. But few newspapers cover each other, even though some outlets that have as much clout as major politicians commit sins all the time.

It looks like with all the attention that has come from blogs bringing down CBS, newspapers don't want to get scooped again. So far Drudge already has another link about The Dallas Morning News getting in legal hot water. The story is by Editor & Publisher, but the story indicates it was first reported by the neighboring Fort Worth Star Telegram.

News organizations have been protected by professional courtesy for too long. Now that bloggers are keeping a keen eye focused on nefarious media dealings, the full power of the news media should be investigating each other as well.