From Brittney Goo:
Journalists today have many more resources than journalists did a few decades ago. The journalist's overall goal of completing a quality story by the assigned deadline still remains the same. However, the way in which journalists meet these deadlines has changed. Today, they have access to press releases, wire services, and other pre-packaged material that can speed up the process of producing a story in time. Time constraints still exist, but the convenience of having pre-assembled content relieves a lot of stress and pressure that goes along with meeting tight deadlines. Unfortunately, this makes it a lot easier for journalists to slack off and discourages them from coming up with original material. Additionally, it can even make the reader more skeptical about a journalist's credentials. Readers are likely to notice that journalists do not always write as much as the public perceives.
A website launched a few months ago that is devoted completely to recognizing whether specific content is original or borrowed from pre-packaged content. It's easy to use: simply copy and paste text into the box and the website will tell you what is original content and what is not. The UK-based website currently searches national newspapers and websites such as BBC news.
Here is the link to the website: http://churnalism.com/
On a side note, here's an interesting article about churnalism and its role in science writing: "Science Churnalism," Guardian
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