[Dr. Frank fan]

I guess it some ways also the war is useful to the media. It is a story that is known to the public so the media doesn't have to spend any time (money) getting the public up to speed on what the story is about and with only one or two 'embedded' reporters and few 'live' reporters, it can't cost that much to follow the story.

This explains media behavior re: the war, certainly. It doesn't quite explain the motivations of the "anti-war" (really, anti-reconstruction) faction however, unless what you're saying is that media focus on Iraq helps fuel these arguments, makes everyone feel like it's "important" and they need to "take a position" on the issue. Actually, that's likely.

[P-40]

It doesn't quite explain the motivations of the "anti-war"

I still think the anti-war crowd is almost exclusively anti-Bush. I've been through some of their 'vigils' and I see very little about the war but everything about the President.