Imagine I was at a party in some friends' home, and I started making loud, unflattering observations about them. "Hey, Bob! What's up with that bald spot! Hey J

Imagine I was at a party in some friends' home, and I started making loud, unflattering observations about them. "Hey, Bob! What's up with that bald spot! Hey Judy, your fibroids doing okay?" It would be the height of rudeness and possibly even malice, and I would quickly have angry people demanding to know what I think I'm doing. That's negative journalism. What do they think they're doing?