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Just came acros this great article from Shay Totten at the Vermont Guardian. Shay writes about reporters who leave the news biz to become pr flacks. He was spurred by Chris Graff's recent announcement that he'll be working for National Life.

Maybe people outside of the journalism world don't think about this much, but it's something that occupies my mind on a fairly regular basis. Like, when I'm exhausted, tired of writing on deadline, and wondering what the hell I would do if I weren't a reporter. It's true, jumping ship to work for a pr department no doubt pays better — much better — and unless you're in crisis or on the campaign trail, I'm sure the hours aren't as grueling. But I'm just not sure I could ever do it.

As a reporter, my responsibility is to readers, and to the idea of finding some kind of truth. As a spokesperson, you answer to the company, or the candidate, or the cause. It's a different way of looking at the world. But I won't deny that it has its attractions.

In his article, Shay has a partial list of Vermont reporters who have gone over to "the dark side." It's worth checking out, especially if you're interested in Vermont's media landscape.