As a travel editor and journalist, I personally frown upon writers contacting people with form letters. It's impersonal, it certainly doesn't inspire trust in the interviewee, and sending out form letters to every person who participated in a particular discussion is, frankly, lazy reporting.

The few times I have contacted someone because of a post they made on a newsgroup, etc., it was always in specific reference to a piece of information they offered online.

If I'm looking for someone to interview on a specific subject, I'm more likely to post a message in a specialized forum asking if anyone with knowledge of the topic would be willing to speak with me. Then, I'll check on the credentials of anyone who has contacted me, if said credentials are important to the story.

While I frown on the practice of using anonymous sources, if someone I contact wishes to remain anonymous, I will weigh the value of that person's statement against the possible harm of having an anonymous source. If I think it isn't worth it, I just won't quote the person.

One thing I thought I should mention about the story of the airline employee. People should be advised that publishing anything in a newsgroup and attaching their names to it means that said quote is up for grabs. It doesn't matter if you don't want to talk about it further, what you've already said or the fact that you said anything can be used by any publication and every court in the U.S. will uphold their right to do that, provided they don't libel you in the process.

We are all posting in a public forum, after all. I don't know all the facts about what happened to the airline employee, so I'm theorizing here: while it may have been socially irresponsible on the part of the reporter, merely quoting the employee's name and the fact that she posts on this list doesn't constitute improper reporting.