If a thread is a duplicate thread, you can alert the moderators and they will lock it. BUT if a particular “story” is told by different news sources, those different sources on the same story will not be locked or deleted, as THAT is allowed here on Free Republic!
For example, there are hundreds of stories on the subject of ISRAEL, but they are allowed, because it’s a broad subject. HOWEVER more recently, there has been a SPECIFIC STORY about Israel that has been repeated 50 times, but by different sources. That’s the story about Netanyahu being invited to talk to Congress. THAT is allowed!
And those stories are of some political significance.