Covering the Boeing beat

Mike Fancher, the Seattle Times’ editor at large, takes a look at the paper’s Dominic Gates, who covers Boeing like a glove despite the fact that the company moved its headquarters to Chicago several eyars ago.

Fancher wrote, “He is also the model for a modern beat reporter. He combines breaking news, enterprise reporting and explanatory writing to provide coverage that is authoritative and accessible. He owns the Boeing beat. His skills will be on display this week as he covers the aviation industry’s biggest event, which alternates each year between the Paris Air Show and the Farnborough Air Show in London. This year it’s in France, and Gates will be there as more than 2,000 exhibitors and industry VIPs strut their stuff.

“The lineup of stories through the week depends on what Gates finds there and on news that breaks. Readers can follow along in the pages of The Times or online at www.seattletimes.com/Boeing.

“Rami Grunbaum, Times deputy business editor, said there are always a bunch of orders announced at these annual shows but that’s not the most important aspect from a reporter’s perspective. This is a chance to talk with the industry’s major figures, including manufacturers, suppliers and airline executives, about the strategic issues that eventually show up in the news. It’s a chance to better understand the entire global airline industry, he said.”

Read more here.