I just found this article on CNN.com. It talks about how Michael Vick's dogfighting ordeal became the center of attention in the media, earning non-stop news coverage for weeks. The public responded in outrage, demanding he be locked away for a long time. The article then points out that stories about human beings being tortured/raped/killed come and go from the news quickly, and they're barely a topic of conversation in society. This might be because for some reason people are more sensitive about dogs being hurt than people being hurt... but probably because Michael Vick is a celebrity.

This reminded me a lot of what we talked about in class yesterday... how news channels are straying from news of actual importance, in favor of news that will attract the most viewers. Not that the Michael Vick case isn't a big deal - at least it's actually real news, and not another "breaking news" story about where Paris Hilton ate lunch today - but there are plenty of stories everyday that deserve at least as much attention as this does, but they don't because the people involved aren't celebrities.