The Times isn't a child in need of operant conditioning; you've anthropomorphized a newspaper. But even if we admit the logical leap from an organization to the

The Times isn't a child in need of operant conditioning; you've anthropomorphized a newspaper. But even if we admit the logical leap from an organization to the humans which collectively direct that organization, we must still contend with the fact that unqualified praise will be associated with the entire sequence of actions that led to it, rather than (perhaps) a single action that was only undertaken after making lots of unpraiseworthy actions. I'm of the opinion that, when it comes to journalism, courage and integrity are table stakes. They need not be praised because they are expected, and their absence should be ruthlessly punished. Even with this premise, one can tolerate mistakes and errors without needing to praise non-mistakes and non-errors.