Did Only Two Papers Feature 4,000 Iraq Deaths Across Their Front Pages?

It's a sad day for America's media when the tragic milestone of 4,000 soldiers' deaths is reported and it appears that just two papers -- yes two -- place it across their front pages. After a search through today's front pages, I found that The Rocky Mountain News in Denver and the Daily News in New York were the only papers to give their entire front pages to honoring the men and women killed in Iraq. The Los Angeles Times gave a top quarter of their front to a feature called "Stories Of The Fallen." If I've missed a paper that featured the deaths across it's entire front page then I welcome any corrections in the comment string of this post.

Although a paltry number of papers gave the U.S. troops a deserved front page memorial, other papers -- like the The Times Herald-Record in Middletown, N.Y and Newsday of Long Island, N.Y. did play the news on the banners above their nameplates or on their initial pages. The NewsMuseum has more analysis here.

Let's take a look at just some of the major US papers that left the soldiers out of their main front page headlines. To give a small bit of credit where not much is due, I've updated that The Washington Post posted a small headline in its very bottom left corner while The New York Times had a mention in a story excerpt below the fold. The major newspapers -- some cut above the folds -- are pasted below. No need for more words. The media's silence on Iraq is loud and clear below.

Comments

[Stefano]

And so you want to use this terrible milestone to serve our politics (I share yours, but I will not use this "milestone") You do not need to plaster 4000 dead soldiers all over the news to remind people that this war has been a disaster. And then what, wait around until the 5000th casualty. As one poster said, the 3999 was just as important as the 4000! Lets not look like we are using a milestone to further our good goal.

[Blake Fleetwood - Huffpost Blogger]

Greatt post. We seem to have forgotten the War.

Most of us are not touched by the deaths and thus they do not happen.

The War Economy will get us all.

[kae]

No one cares, a few do, but political sexcapades sell much better. George Bush and the media have slowly and steadily shifted this country's focus - for the most part Americans will only care if something happens to their family or friends - the soldiers and the war only matter when the media thinks it will be profitable. It completely blows my mind that so much attention has been given to Spitzer and his replacement. Lets save all the moral outrage for Bush/Cheney.

[jimpryor99]

I'm wondering how many times this author reported #3,993. Wasn't this person as important as #4000? Why in the world do people only focus on the round numbers? #1 was pretty important to.

[VOTER]

Why doesn't HUfFFPOST print at the top of their Main Page, a daily American War Death Tally?

[Moderation]

Right? C'mon, Arianna. Keep the war visible. Don't let the people forget that there is still a bleedin' WAR going on, in which 4000+ Americans, and 500,000+ Iraqis have been KILLED.

[parkerfly38]

Ms. Zaleski,

[gtt]

U.S. Military Deaths in Iraq Reach 4,000 - roadsid bomb kills four GIs while insurgents mount heavy attack on Baghdad's Green Zone

[Boomerwoman]

The Seattle Times front page cover photo was very well done.

[TheJibreelaMonsters]

what is your point, I get my news from the Huff Po so what do I have to worry about?

[CitizenFace]

Your search was incomplete. When I walked by the soon-to-open "Newseum" yesterday in DC, I stopped to look at the display cases featuring the front page from major newspapers in every state. Several featured the 4,000.

[VOTER]

USA TODAY, a newspaper found in all states and most cities, DID NOT!

[gg1329]

I agree that there were a lot of papers that failed to report the 4,000 mark, but not just two. Even The Advocate in Baton Rouge, La had it as the top headline.

[gtt]

Ms. Zaleski, I do agree that the msm has repeatedly failed to report the horror of this war. However, I question the detail of your search in this instance. The Houston Chronicle, a very large daily that is a good, but not a very progressive paper (it appears each morning on my lawn next to my Obama '08 sign), did have the following headline March 24, 2008 at the TOP of the front page:

[gtt]

[garyccb]

Let's see... WWII and 24,000 American soldiers died on D-Day and over 75,000 were killed during the month-long Battle of the Bulge. I can't find a single large daily newspaper that headlined these deaths on their front page. When you whine that there is not enough reporting on the "horror of this war" it is nothing less than a war protest on your part. Compared to the American Civil War (600,000 died) or WWII (72,000,000 died on all sides) - this is a skirmish.

That doesn't make it any more palatable. But I usually find those of your ilk will try to appease our very real enemies until it is too late. And hundreds of thousands more will die because of your rank stupidity. of course, then you can complain that we didn't do enough to protect you and your deceased family.

Absolutely pitiful.....

[CatfishJohn]

.....The acquiescence by the corporate media to the Orwellianism of the administration makes todays mainstream journalism look more and more like a collective Pravda. Katie couric giggles and does a story on spring fashion while the Iraq war is reduced to 3% of media coverage in the past month, according to Iraq war vet and expert ontthe matter paul rieckoff ( which was about 7% less than the amount of coverage on MSM dedicated to anna nicole smith's drug-addled corpse a year or so ago)....then the corporate media quickly segues into a sympathetic story about the woes of the multimillionaire investment class, then acts befuddled in explaining gasoline prices, willfully ignoring exxon/mobil's $40,000,000,000 in profits as have anything to do with it...on and on it goes....

[melonman]

Correction: The Dallas Morning News also had it as the top headline.

[TheJibreelaMonsters]

I Got a Better Number For You Kids 4000: Two

[dadw5boys]

CONTROL THE NEWS AND CONTROL THE PEOPLE.