Being a journalist means talking to lots of people for lots of different reasons. Those we speak to pretty regularly, such as elected officials or corporate spokespeople, know when we call that they are speaking to a journalist and that unless otherwise specified, what they're saying could end up in print.

But in covering spot news -- a house fire or car crash, for instance -- we interview people who may have never spoken to a reporter before, and may not realize that what they're telling us could be published as a statement they made.

If you are approached in person by someone on my staff, he or she will be wearing a photo-ID badge with the word "PRESS" in large letters. He or she will also tell you that he/she is a newspaper reporter (or photographer), and ask if it's all right to ask you some questions. These are important cues for you to realize you are being interviewed by a journalist. If you don't wish to be interviewed, that's all right. Just say, "I don't want to be interviewed." The reporter will thank you for your time and move on.

If you get a telephone call from someone on my staff, s/he will identify her/himself as a reporter for the Journal, and ask if it's all right to ask you some questions. Again, here's where the bell should be ringing in your head that what you say could be used in print.

If you want to talk, but don't want your name used, please say so immediately. Not only does it avoid confusion later, but when we are on deadline, it's not right for you to spend 20 minutes detailing how you saw your neighbor set fire to his house, and then say "Oh, but don't use my name." That's 20 minutes we could have spent getting someone else to go on the record with us.

Attributing information to a named person lets our readers know they can trust the information. We also require second-source corroboration. That means we get the same information from two separate sources, which assures us, and our readers, of accuracy.

Very, very rarely do we use information from anonymous sources in print. At least once a day I get a call from someone who has "a big story" for me, but can't give me his/her name. I'm happy to listen. If what I hear perks my interest, I'll pass it to a reporter for some digging, to see if we can confirm it -- and then we may have a story. But just because you call me up and tell me that you know of "something bad happening" does not mean it will ever appear in print. I owe it to my readers to give them the most accurate information in every story, every day, and if I can't confirm it, I'm not going to run it.