Frank Catalano, a business reporter for the Cascadia Daily News in Washington, writes about the role of a business journalist.

Catalano writes, “It helped to start with a definition. A journalist is someone who reports news of interest to their audience. Whom the business doesn’t pay. And who incorporates what the business does or says into their own story, one the journalist researches and develops.

“Flags that a business isn’t dealing with a journalist? The outlet offers to let the business review or edit the story before it appears (a good journalist pays attention, takes detailed notes and follows up to verify fuzzy facts but never turns the business into the story’s author). They ask the business to pay a fee (this can be for “expenses,” in the case of purely promotional outlets that might otherwise look like journalism). They won’t tell the business what the story they’re working on is (stories can change as facts roll in, but all stories start with the reporter having some idea of what angle is worth pursuing).

“Put another way: follow the money. If the business is paying anything for the story, it’s not journalism.

“Now, does that mean it’s a mistake for a business to talk with a promotional influencer, a pay-for-play outlet, or a non-journalist who agrees to share the news for free?”

Read more here.