It's not the Jon Stewart show, Gawker parties, and book deals. With the circulation of most newspapers in freefell and ad revenues shrinking daily, its outsourcing, lay-offs, cutbacks -- a race to the bottom. And it's proving yourself; working all hours to get the story. It's standing in the cold waiting for the story. Staying late to cover the budget. Getting hate mail, and being sworn at by angry readers (and your news editor). It's also about getting lucky, getting a break, being in the right place at the right time and digging deep like a dog with a bone.

It's pretty shocking that after months of an expensive police surveillance, the most compelling evidence produced in the Ford investigation are photos of people acting suspiciously. Criminal investigations of serious crimes are always about obtaining direct rather than circumstantial evidence wherever possible. They're about tapes, paper trails and drug tests, not semi-useless photos of people with envelopes and plastic bags.