Is charging for journalistic non-coverage really such a bad idea?

You may have heard that a writer for the New York Post’s Page Six has been accused of trying to extort money from a rich businessman. The alleged deal: The often-truculent gossip section would go easy on billionaire Ronald Burkle if he’d funnel a couple hundred-thousand bucks to the writer, Jared Paul Stern. While media coverage has focused on the journalistic ethics (or lack thereof) of the case, surely this is missing the big picture.