That's what's known as tacit corruption. Journalists who participate in "access journalism" get invited to off-the-record dinner parties and yachting weekends.

That's what's known as tacit corruption. Journalists who participate in "access journalism" get invited to off-the-record dinner parties and yachting weekends. Journalists who ask hard hitting questions in the public interest tend not to be invited to the intimate soirées of the elite. While there are very occasionally ethical reasons for a journalist to talk to a source off-the-record they are not going to occur in convivial social settings.