Third in a five-part series on the revolving door between journalism and government in New Jersey. Yesterday, Debbie Holtz wrote about the century-old practice of reporters who move to government.

Gov. Jon Corzine's new Communications Director is a Star-Ledger reporter who has covered him for the last three yearsImagine sharing a confidence with a journalist during an "off the record" conversation that becomes part of a media story. Now think about how you'd feel when that reporter resigns and joins the staff of your political adversary.

The first question that pops into your head is: Will my promise of confidentiality still be honored by the reporter in his or her new position?

The jailing of former New York Times reporter Judith Miller and freelance blogger Josh Wolf raised questions about the need for a federal shield law in order to protect the confidentiality of journalist-source relationships from government-seeking subpoenas.

The debate was silent on the question of whether sources are protected from inquisitive government or political employers once a reporter leaves the news organization.

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Second in a five-part series on the revolving door between journalism and government in New Jersey. Yesterday, Debbie Holtz wrote about post-employment ethics for the journalist-turned-spokeswoman.

Gov. Jon Corzine's new Communications Director is a Star-Ledger reporter who has covered him for the last three yearsIt’s described as a “century-old” practice. The list of reporters who moved from the Fourth Estate to government /political spokesperson positions is long and impressive.

It includes Pierre Salinger -- who went from reporter to White House press secretary and back again to chief European correspondent for ABC News. Add Bill Moyers to the list -- his tour of duty began at a local radio station in Texas, made a few stops at posts in the Johnson Administration, only later to return to the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). And let’s not forget Jerald terHorst -- President Gerald Ford tapped the former Detroit News Washington Bureau Chief as his press secretary in an effort to return some integrity to the Office of the President after Richard Nixon’s resignation.

The list also includes some lesser known names, and the dividing line between actual and perceived conflicts of interests seems a bit more blurred.

The reality is people change jobs all the time, and for a variety of reasons. Reporters are no different than the rest of the working population. No one's going to get rich from a job in journalism, and particularly at newspapers. The leap from the news room to "the front office" can mean a mean a sizable bump in salary. The average salary for reporters is $42K according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while communications positions in NJ government and politics are typically in the six figure range.

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First in a five-part series on the revolving door between journalism and government in New Jersey

Gov. Jon Corzine's new Communications Director is a Star-Ledger reporter who has covered him for the last three yearsRecent job jumping by veteran Statehouse newspaper staff raises uncomfortable questions about ethics, full disclosure, and the fate of news sources who suddenly find themselves politically vulnerable in the reporter’s afterlife. Over the next week, we’ll pull back the curtain on a century-old conundrum by asking media industry experts where the line should be drawn.

Consider this scenario: A state senator interviews for a job at PSE&G. Between the interview and the offer, the legislator votes on a utility industry-related issue. How would the press treat the story when it’s later learned the senator was resigning to take a fulltime position with the energy company?

To be certain, reporters would scurry to check the legislative code of ethics for an actual or perceived conflict of interest.

But what's the reaction when a reporter goes from covering the Governor to covering for the Governor as his communications director? Since media organizations are not public entities, the do’s and don’ts of reporters’ post-employment codes of conflict are largely unknown.

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It’s no surprise when shock jocks display poor behavior. The problem starts when their antics infect the newsroom.

At the recent 101.5-incited Statehouse rally protesting the Gov’s EZ Pass to getting the State out of debt, we saw both extremes.

It’s fair game when commentators want to use their airtime to grumble about government. It’s probably even OK if they want to stage a protest rally with their rabid listeners as a Greek chorus.

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“It is easy enough to look back at 2007 and pass judgment”, Tom Moran penned in a recent column.  Given his recent hire at PSE&G, it’s seems fair to look back and at least ask some questions.

Reporters are no different than most job seekers – mums the word until you have actually landed the new position.  But do they have an obligation to their readers to avoid stories inviting potential conflicts while they are job hunting? Read More >

Like the Patriots in the red zone much of Sunday night, it's been a drought for NJ's all-time leading quote QB.
But then, just before the Super Bowl, the Bergen Record ran a story about whether NJ's political crowd was being gifted free tickets to the big game by way of the NJ Sports & Exposition Authority.

So when a story needs a subject matter expert -- no matter the topic -- you call the Sierra Club, of course.

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I was watching Dan Abrams on MSNBC the other night run down his top 5 Super Tuesday blunders by political pundits and the media.

It got me to thinking how the NJ media faired on its coverage of the presidential primary.

Pretty well…based on an analysis of the run-up coverage prior to Tuesday judged against the final tallies!

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Residential and commercial electric customers join forces to pull the plug on a billion buck boondoggle by NJ's largest utility company. And why isn't this front page news?

That’s the real point of Wednesday’s Star Ledger story about a Public Advocate-led ratepayer complaint against PSE&G for surcharges on electric customers to pay - again - for the utility giant's decades old power plants. Only problem is the story was buried inside the Business section, below the fold, and a mere three column inches.

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Which Democratic presidential candidate is the real “agent of change”? 

That was the topic of The Record’s Charles Stile’s column on Tuesday.

In his political column previewing last night’s Hillary Clinton for President fundraiser organized by Bergen County Democrat Chair Joe Ferriero, Stile questioned the legitimacy of Clinton’s reform message.

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If you’re keeping score, editorial support for the Governor’s toll-spiked debt restructuring plan is 0-6-15.

While no editors have jumped on board, some

, like The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Star Ledger and The Record, have credited the Governor for coming up with a plan.

The Gov hasn't exactly been issued an EZ Pass. Mostly the newspapers are reserving judgment until there’s a full airing of the plan.

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