19 firefighters killed battling Arizona wildfire

AP tweeted the story late Sunday evening. I think it was after 11 Eastern. That was the first I saw of it.

I don't know about the 24/7s, but it was the lead story on CBS Evening News last night. And I saw where an editor from Outside who did a piece on his old hot shot crew was on AC 360 last night.

 

Those wildfires seem to be more horrific than hurricanes or tornados.

 

It happened late Sunday night Mountain time, so many didn't pick up on it until Monday morning. It was the lead story on NBC Nightly Monday.

Just awful. These guys were the best of the best. Just an awful turn of weather circumstances.

 

A couple factors, I think:

(1) Timing, which people have pointed out;

(2) By the time the story was reported, it was pretty much over. No mystery to drive it. No culprit. No rescue mission. Nothing.

(3) Location. Not on either coast or Chicago.

I think a lot of these same factors conspired to keep the Texas fertilizer explosion story on the relative down low, as well.

 

If there was a lack of coverage -- and I am not buying that, but if there was -- there is also the matter that there is no controversy or greater issue attached to it. Once you say RIP and express your shock, there's really nothing left if you aren't from the area.

 

Exactly. That's pretty much what I was getting at with No. 2.

 

I guess I just expected more. If 19 police officers had died doing something, I feel like we would be seeing flags at half-staff, and I wouldn't have gone two days before I heard about it.

 

Agreed. If 19 workers died in a garment factory fire in India the cable news programs would be all over it because they could stick a finger in the eye of Walmart.

Much of the news today seems to be agenda based.

 

Come on, Boom. The Bangladesh factory accident got very little play. I bet 90 percent of Americans don't know that it happened.