Magnolia Picture's Man on Wire, the 2009 Oscar-winning documentary that has been showered with critical praise and global film awards, is among the first titles to be offered for purchase in HD on VUDU, along with critically acclaimed Transsiberian and War, Inc. from FirstLook Studios.

ENGADGET: VUDU first on-demand service to sell HD and HDX movies HD

The proximity of kisha club members to the people they cover creates chummy relationships that make it hard for reporters to write critical stories, says Akira Uozumi, a freelance reporter who worked for 20 years at Kyodo News, a wire service and kisha-club regular.

ECONOMIST: Why the press-club system should be abolished