It appears that Journalism ethics don't exist in small markets like Bozeman, MT.

That's the market where KBZK Anchor/Reporter Judy Slate covers the local sheriff Brian Gootkin better than anyone.

She has done fluff piece after fluff piece about the sheriff, but she always leaves out one little tid-bit.

She's been dating the guy for over a year.

“The TV station – the leading TV station here in Bozeman – has become a glorified PR desk for the sheriff,” says a Reporter to Jim Romenesko “Slate gets to have her pick of time with the sheriff and her station gets notified of news that otherwise no one would have heard about, like remote traffic accidents in the middle of the night.

Slate's profile pic on her Facebook page shows her and the sheriff and she talks about how she gets "her man" in her stories. 

Romenesko reached out to KBZK News Director John Sherer in emails which he never responded to. When he finally got him on the phone, this was his response, “I’m in our morning meeting and I’m not going to talk to you about it anyway.” He then hung up.

Well John Sherer I hope you really like Bozeman, because if you plan on staying in TV news, you're going to be there for a long time to come.