Mike Arrington, Editor of Techcrunch, yesterday replied to his critics. In his post he said he would continue to make investments and that everyone in Silicon Valley is conflicted in one way or another.

I still believe that editors and reporters should not be investors in companies that they cover. I'd like to invite Mike Arrington, and anyone else that's interested in the topic of ethics in journalism, to join me at the upcoming 8th Conference on Innovation Journalism at Stanford University - May 23 to 25.

There will be lots of discussion about all aspects of journalism and how it applies to reporting about innovation. And there will also be sessions about the role of PR. Registration is just $50. Here is the agenda.

The conference is organized by the Stanford Center for Innovation and Communication, founded by David Nordfors, Executive Director.

Topics and speakers:

- Hkan Eriksson, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Ericsson, provides a glimpse into the future of mobile. As Ericsson’s top technology strategist, Hkan Eriksson is one of the most influential leaders in the mobile industry.

.- Why Innovation Isn’t a Hot Election Topic (Yet) - Sven Otto Littorin, Visiting Scholar, Stanford Center for Innovation and Communication and former Swedish Minister for Employment.

- Why Innovation Journalism Matters - Michael S. Malone, Silicon Valley-based innovation journalist.

- Mobile Publishing: User Experiences and Future Trends - Zena Iovino, InJo Fellow; Harry McCracken, Founder and Editor of Technologizer and columnist for Time.com; Justin Ferrell, Director of Digital, Mobile and New Product Design for The Washington Post; Evan Doll, Co-founder of Flipboard; and Jacob Ward, West Coast Bureau Chief for Popular Science magazine.

- Are we heading for Collective Intelligence or Collective Neurosis? - David Nordfors, Executive Director of Stanford Center for Innovation and Communication; Nicklas Lundblad, Senior Policy Counsel and Head of Public Policy for Google; and Elizabeth Filippouli, Founder of Global Thinkers.

- The Great Transformation: How innovation affects journalism and journalism affects innovation — Derek O’Halloran, World Economic Forum.

Key theme this year:

The convergence of mobile phones, personal computers and the Internet is leading a mobile innovation economy and changing the media’s role as gatekeeper. So what can we expect next?