The AP is disappointed that a desired headline for the end of the year did not quite work out. Instead, they publish the non-story, U.S. Toll for Year in Iraq Nears '04 Mark:
A U.S. soldier died Saturday from wounds inflicted by a mortar attack in Baghdad, the military said. That put the American military death toll for the year at 841 _ five short of 2004's record total despite political progress and dogged U.S. and Iraqi efforts to quash the insurgency.
Five short! Damn, so close!
For those that think media bias is imaginary, consider this. The headline could just as easily have been, “U.S. Deaths in Iraq Slightly Down from '04”. Make a mental note if you come across a headline like that.
Also, oddly, the story is for the most part not about the AP’s death count fetish. The story is 785 words, of which only 89 relate to the headline. That’s 11%. On second thought, perhaps I should be thankful...
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