Leave Staging at the theater

I agree with Dave Wertheimer, a reporter should always try to get to a location early and capture the event in its most natural form possible. His boss made the farmer arguement, about the reporter being late for the planting. Well in my view the reporter should've planned ahead and gotten there early, being late to an event is no excuse, in professional or academic level of, journalism.
I understand that a reporters very presence can alter the situation to some extent, but staging a shot takes it one step too far. What i found shooting my shots is if you keep a good distance from your subject and let them get about their work, the subject would soon forget you're there. I ended up recording some really personal stuff, by the end of the day. Also I found what makes people more comfortable around the camera is if you have a a conversation with them about something other than story while you are setting up your equipment. There are a million ways to capture an assignment in its most natural state and there is no reason for a reporter to stage the incident.