Gee -- where do you draw the line between news reporting and a press release with this story? It certainly seems that they may have crossed the line here, with an MSNBC "news" story trumpeting the wisdom of MSNBC buying Newsvine.

Msnbc.com is diving into citizen journalism and social media by acquiring Newsvine.com, a small but innovative player in what is known as “participatory journalism.”

It is msnbc.com’s first acquisition in its 11-year history.

Neither of the companies would disclose terms of the all-cash transaction, which was announced Sunday, but deals for other social media sites have ranged as high as the $75 million that eBay was reported to have spent for StumbleUpon.com, which claims about 3½ times the number of users as Newsvine.

And I'm sure that the MSNBC employees involved in covering this story pressed really hard to get answers to that question, and engaged in serious investigative techniques to find uncover the answers of the spokespeople who were stonewalling them.