In Iraq today, at least thirty three citizens were found dead in the streets, tortured and mutilated, and six or seven American soldiers and two Brits were killed in action by insurgents. Meanwhile, in Australia, Steve Irwin, "the Crockodile Hunter," was killed by a sting ray. Guess which story led the news.
The answer, at least on the NBC nightly newscast at 6:30, was the death of Steve Irwin. Not only was Irwin's death the lead story on the most watched network news show in America, it occupied the first two segments of the program. Iraq came third, and received much less than half the time devoted to the Crockodile Hunter. Crikey!
I am not a main stream news basher. Without them we would know an awful lot less than we do about the venality, incompetence, and, yes, evil, of the present administration. And I understand that they are in a life and death struggle for viewers/readers. But really - do the American people care more about the death of Steve Irwin than what's happening in Iraq? And if they do, isn't it the duty of the main stream media to use their position in our society to talk about what's really important, even if the public would rather hear about some celebrity? It might even be good strategy - talk about Iraq first and the people will have to stay tuned a little longer in order to find out about Jon Benet or the crockodile hunter.
But the problem is bigger than just what leads the news on one night. When the insurgency in Iraq first emerged the death of seven American soldiers in one day would have raised banner headlines and breathless news anchors across the media. Quite apart from the death and destruction, this unwise, unnecessary,illegal and utterly botched war has increased terrorism, destroyed our national reputation,enraged many former friends, and left us weaker in our ability to deal with other serious problems. Yes the people are tired of it - but come on, media, do your job. There is nothing the perpetrators would rather see than Iraq off the front page. Not even Steve Irwin would want you to let that happen.