[layman]

The local six o'clock news where I live in Pittsburgh invariably goes like this ..... Two murders last night (video of police placing numbered cards beside bullet casings laying on street) ... House destroyed by fire, family of seven escapes safely (video of firemen watering down smoldering remains) ... Three fatalities on Parkway East (video from helicopter of crushed vehicles) ... Local politician indicted for misuse of funds (video of smiling politician entering courthouse accompanied by four attorneys) ... FBI cracks drug ring (video of handcuffed perps being lead from van into courthouse) ... etc., etc.

I am certain that this representation of life in Pittsburgh is as accurate as NBC's representation of life in Iraq.

[CedarDave]

I am certain that this representation of life in Pittsburgh is as accurate as NBC's representation of life in Iraq.

Same here. The only reason I saw a part of this morning's Today show and their attempt at spin is because it followed local news of a sheriff's deputy was shot and killed while making a traffic stop a couple of miles from my house.

The NBC show was amazing in that the reporter said the insurgents/terrorists are very much in tune with how their actions are viewed in the US. Having just said that, he followed with "security is the story here", essentially letting them know their propaganda campaign is working, much to the disgust, no doubt, of the locals who pay the price with even more death and destruction.

[AD from SpringBay]

Excellent point that can be applied to any 'action news' report in the United States.

[Elyse]

I am certain that this representation of life in Pittsburgh is as accurate as NBC's representation of life in Iraq.

But that news report is for people that live in Pittsburg. You can look around you and see with your own eyes that that isn't the whole story. I don't think you can compare local news coverage to coverage of a war in a foreign land where we are reliant on the media to show the whole story because we can't see anything but what they show us.