That stuff has been going on for years - we know it and they know we know. And despite the protestations of the newsroom, they know how the game is played. Note all the feigned outrage from the news types.
What happened is the marketing types got a little carried away. Such ‘salons’ are supposed to handled by word-of-mouth on a need-to-know basis.
The P. T. Barnum promotion with glossy flyers is inappropriate for such events.
This time, they got caught.
Journalist die every year covering the news - and they wouldn't be giving up their lives for a “used car lot” manager ( not trying to insult used car dealers by inferring they're like the publisher of the Washington Post...)