Most "journalists" seem to fall into the "lazy" category, simply rewriting press releases without applying any judgment at all. Which ones they rewrite and publish depends on political factors, but they don't analyze them.

Imaginary example:

Tom Daschle says the Moon is made of green cheese. News report: "Daschle reports Moon is made of green cheese, Republicans disagree." At no point does the media entertain the idea that an objective and independent confirmation is desirable, or even possible. Interest groups on all sides of the political spectrum have learned to exploit this "parrot syndrome," realizing that they can have the most outlandish bullshit spread across the national media without any filtration whatsoever.