The Bush Administration has made it very difficult for reporters covering the White House to deviate from the Administration's talking points or perspective. Those reporters who use other sources or suggest that the White House might not be telling the truth can find themselves frozen out of information, denied access to press conferences, and even the ability to ask a question at a briefing.

So here's my little rule of thumb concerning the reliability of information reported from the Washington. It may have always been true but it seems particularly applicable to this administration.

The closer the reporter or information source is to the White House, the less likely the information reported will be true.

Remember though that the inverse is NOT necessarily true.