Here’s a good example of how to take “hat/tip journalism” to the next level. It comes from Aly Weisman, editor of Business Insider’s entertainment vertical.

Picking up on a brief September Hollywood Reporter item, USC grad Weisman went ahead and contacted Splash News CEO Gary Morgan. To find out exactly why the makers of 2013 biopic Diana starring Naomi Watts would partner with an entity most such productions normally work hard to keep at bay:

“Traditionally, the production company will hire an on-set photographer,” explained Morgan. “And that photographer will take pictures that they want to release over time for the production, to draw attention to it. And they will then take these pictures and give it to a PR company who will then place that picture in what they think are high traffic or important magazines or newspapers. These PR companies are usually territory-based and don’t deal with a mass audience on a day-to-day basis. They’ll deal with the top-tier, like People magazine, or Entertainment Tonight, or someone like that.”

“What’s different here is that Splash, over 20 years, has grown a distribution network that’s probably the biggest in the news field. We press a button and it goes to different countries….

Much more insight from Morgan in the article. The Splash News CEO is not as well-known as someone like Harvey Levin, but make no mistake. His operation is doing as much as TMZ to change the way we consume the 24/7 celeb news flow.

[Photo of Watts as Princess Diana: Cinéart]