Death Toll in Iraq Reaches 4256...
Well doesn't this headline from ABC just put a smile on your face? (I am clearly being sarcastic.) This is what I begin my Spring Break (in Florida I might add) with. I opened the ABC News website and found this headline. Automatically, my mood changed, but I think they expected that. I think it was very strategic on their part to include the exact number of the rising death toll rather than saying that it simply increased. The former is clearly more eye-catching. I can confess that I most likely would have not opened the article if it simply stated that it increased as this happens almost each day. This tactic was, in my opinion, an attempt to set this story apart from similar ones in different publications. The facts they chose to present within the article is also an interesting point to focus on as well. The author chose to mention the death tolls of other countries involved, beginning with Britain which comes in a distant second place with 179 deaths. I am unsure the motive behind it, but regardless, the obvious juxtaposition of this with the thousands of U.S. deaths was significant and startling is so many ways. Could ABC be trying to make a statement about their position on the U.S. involvement in the war, citing the death toll as an obvious reason for our withdrawal from the war? I am not certain, but this article could indeed serve as an indicator of it.
