When the Los Angeles Times ran an April 9 front-page ad for the NBC police drama Southland that resembled a news story, the newspaper demonstrated how the traditional “church-and-state” barrier is being further worn down, partially due to the recession.
The ad, placed on the bottom-left corner of the front page – a spot reserved for editorial content – was clearly labeled an advertisement. But the placement did not get rave reviews from Times employees, about 100 of whom signed a ...