Comment Re:those damn kids (Score 1) 353
Hell, Journalists aren't reporters these days. Reporters aren't reporters.
They just regurgitate corporate press releases without any critical analysis.
Yes, that's what I noticed (I think about 10 years ago, but perhaps these things started much sooner?), but they do another very valuable thing: Trying to stir up trouble by helping people who act as annoying little boys sometimes do: Telling boy-A 'the boy-B said xxxxx', whatever xxxxx is doesn't matter, and whether it's true doesn't matter, they try to make it look bad, and twist words so that there might be a fight between the boy A and B.
I saw such things years ago in Dutch newspapers and in one case where someone working in the airtravel industry make manipulative statements, which the newspaper printed without question, without any analysis as to why this guy made these statements (which was of course to get higher limits on aircraft movements in Schiphol). In this case in 2005, I emailed the paper 'Volkskrant' asking them if they did not see throught this guy Verberk's (from airline Martinair) manipulation, or that it was their intention to stir up trouble? (which I said I guessed they wanted to do, as they almost certainly can look through this manipulation, and if the writer could not, then the editor should have been able to!)
Since it no longer pays to report in the public interest, we're left with PR whores chasing $$$, opponents with an axe to grind and obsessed amateur sleuths on the web.
And for that reason I think amateurs should actually be treated more leniently than professionals with regard to slander/libel. The professionals have much more resources at their disposal! They can check, have access to people. If an 'amateur' wants some information he is lucky if het gets a real answer at all.