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This study proposes the interventionist and the detached orientations to watchdog journalism through the conceptual lens of journalistic role performance. Based on a content analysis of 33,640 news stories from sixty-four media outlets in eighteen countries, we measure and compare both orientations across different countries using three performative aspects of monitoring: intensity of scrutiny, voice of the scrutiny, and source of the event. Our findings show that the interventionist approach of watchdog journalism is more likely to be found in democracies with traditionally partisan and opinion-oriented journalistic cultures or experiencing sociopolitical crises. In turn, the detached orientation predominates in democracies with journalistic traditions associated to objectivity. Although both orientations have a lower presence in transitional democracies, the detached watchdog prevails, while in non-democratic countries the watchdog role is almost absent. Our results also reveal that structural contexts of undemocratic political regimes and restricted press freedom are key definers of watchdog role performance overall. However, the type of political regime is actually more important—and in fact the most important predictor— for detached than for interventionist reporting.

I used temperature-sensing radiotransmitters to investigate the effect offeeding on body temperatures of rattlesnakes in the Sonoran Desert. Six snakes were fed meals (rodents) averaging 34% of their body mass. Snake locations and body temperatures were monitored before and after feeding in midautumn. Body temperatures of snakes that had eaten were compared with the body temperatures of unfed controls and with environmental temperatures. Rattlesnakes exhibited preferences for elevated body temperatures following feeding, but the degree, timing, and duration of this response varied considerably. At this time of year, body temperatures offed snakes were significantly higher than those of unfed controls only between 1200 and 1600 hours. The postfeeding thermophilic responses of snakes were restricted by thermal limitations in the snakes' environment and by reclusive behaviors following feeding. The elevated body temperatures selected by snakes after feeding were similar to those maintained during activity.