Independence, integrity and freedom from whiskey

I was intrigued to read on reuters.com that the excellent "Route to Recovery" series on the American recession is "brought to you" by Amtrak, the US-government owned rail network. 

Thomson Reuters maintains that the Trust Principles apply to the dissemination of news as well as to the gathering of news, as well it should. At the same time it allows a troubling perception of dependence on corporate advertising to creep into its news presentation in a way that other respected news organisations are careful to avoid.

True, a footnote on the home page of the "Route to Recovery" series at www.reuters.com/routetorecovery clarifies for those who scroll down that "Reuters journalists are traveling by air, road and rail for this special report. All travel expenses are paid for by Reuters". Are we to assume, though, that the series would not have been undertaken without corporate sponsorship?

No such footnote appears to be included with another advertisement that "brings you" the news on reuters.com, this one from Jack Daniel's. Perhaps Reuters should make clear that Jack Daniel's is not providing liquid nourishment to its journalists. ■