In a new book out this week, the 37-year-old single mother describes mental health problems related to her captivity and tells how it felt to play second fiddle in the media to fellow POW Jessica Lynch, who was captured in the same ambush.
"It was kind of hurtful," the former Army cook said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "If I'd been a petite, cutesy thing, it would've been different."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What I see is a lede and following paragraph by an AP writer who is putting events, and opinions about Johnson's book in his/her own words.
In the third paragraph I see a quote by Johnson. I don't know the question to which she responded, or how it was worded. I don't know if that is Johnson's full response to the question, or whether it was taken out of context to evoke a certain opinion in the reader of this article.
I don't find her quote, such as it is, to be particularly damning. I think she is basically saying that Lynch received attention from the press that wasn't given to herself, and the others, because Lynch fit a template the media wanted for their coverage that wasn't met by the others.
Doesn't post 49 explain that though?