When company earnings become a story

Paul O’Donnell, the business editor of the Dallas Morning News, writes about how his reporters cover earnings stories.

O’Donnell writes, “We add value for our readers by providing meaningful analysis of quarterly results. Our retailing writer, Maria Halkias, knows the story of J.C. Penney’s turnaround better than anyone who isn’t involved in actually executing it. Veteran columnist Mitch Schnurman is diving deep into AT&T’s transformational strategy as it plays out on several continents.

“Our reporters will continue to examine earnings reports, track regulatory filings, listen to conference calls and interview executives of North Texas public companies. They’ll still be watchdogging the companies that matter most.

“And we’ll continue to report quarterly on our owner, A.H. Belo Corporation, to ensure the transparency that we think our readers want and the community deserves.

“But, yes, we’re going to be increasingly selective about the earnings stories that we write. We think the result will be greater context and insight in the ones we do choose to take on.”

Read more here.