Investigating accounting problems at the Pentagon
Reuters recently published part two of an investigative series on the high cost of the Pentagon’s bookkeeping. The series, by Reuters reporter Scot Paltrow, revealed that accounting issues at the Pentagon have led to widespread pay errors for America’s soldiers, a persistent inability to tally financial records and ledgers doctored with false entries. Paltrow talks […]
How Marketwatch uses polls of its readers to report stories
A Marketwatch.com story last week about investing in the Twitter initial public offering originated from a poll that had run earlier in the week that allowed folks to leave an email address if they wanted to be contacted by a reporter. It’s a reporting tactic that can be useful during a time when all journalists, […]
Reporting a company scoop
Reuters correspondent Claire Jim recently reported that Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC was scaling back production lines as cash flow worsened. Following the story, the stock rose as analysts credited the scoop as a key factor as investors predicted the cuts would lift cash flow. Jim spoke about how the story was reported: Q. How did […]
Amazon book writer responds to MacKenzie Bezos critique
Brad Stone, the Bloomberg Businessweek reporter who recently published a book about Amazon.com, writes in response to a one-star review the book received from McKenzie Bezos, the wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Stone writes, “No matter how hard we strive for objectivity, writers are biased toward tension — those moments in which character is […]
Amazon criticizes book by Bloomberg Businessweek writer
Amazon.com says that the book written about the company and founder Jeff Bezos by Bloomberg Businessweek writer Brad Stone was not properly fact-checked, writes Jay Yarow of Business Insider. Yarow writes, “Amazon spokesperson Craig Berman sent us this statement: ‘Over the course of the author’s reporting, Amazon facilitated meetings for him with more than half a dozen […]
How to cover the transportation beat
Andy Riga of the Montreal Gazette writes for Curbingcars.com on how to cover the transportation beat. Riga writes, “Want to be a transport reporter? Here’s my road map to a fulfilling (and fun) beat. “1) Make it practical. Help people get around, whatever their preferred mode. Major roadwork, transit interruptions, bike-path obstructions. I write ‘em […]
Why can’t we all just get along?
Talking Biz News hosted a conference Friday at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism in New York about the state of business journalism. The first panel featured journalists, former journalists, corporate public relations officers and PR agency executives exploring the relationships between corporations and business journalists. Many on the panel agreed that today’s fast-paced news […]
Financial literacy and business journalism
Felix Salmon of Reuters writes Thursday about the importance of financial literacy for business journalists. Salmon writes, “But there’s a superficial exactness to numbers that doesn’t exist in words, and so people have a tendency to believe that all numbers are much more precise than in fact they are. If the Labor Department releases a […]
Forbes introduces anonymous tip function
Business magazine Forbes unveiled Tuesday an online submissions system of the kind pioneered by WikiLeaks for securely, anonymously sharing files and tips with its journalists called SafeSource. Andy Greenberg of the Forbes staff writes, “Anyone can visit Safesource.forbes.com and use the anonymity software Tor to upload sensitive documents or messages for our reporters. Tor protects […]
PR and biz reporter relationships, part two
In my last post, I offered the following advice for public relations professionals; “Building strong relationships with reporters is the best way to collaborate on story ideas.” These relationships don’t come easily. They require insightful sources and creative story ideas, as well as in-person meetings and social media engagement. There are, of course, simple rules […]
