If it bleeds it leads. Progress in Iraq can be accurately tracked by the inverse relationship between events on the ground and the amount of press coverage.
Progress goes up, coverage comes down.
MRC Study:
As Surge Succeeds and Casualty Rates Fall, ABC, CBS and NBC Lose Interest In Iraq War
Good News = Less News on Iraq War
Vanishing War. Back in September, as reporters voiced skepticism of General Petraeus’ progress report, the networks aired a total of 178 Iraq stories, or just under two per network per night. (See chart.) About one-fourth of those stories (42) were filed from Iraq itself, with most of the rest originating in Washington.
In October, TV’s war news fell by about 40 percent, to 108 stories, with the number of reports filed from Iraq itself falling to just 20, or less than one-fifth of all Iraq stories. By November, the networks aired a mere 68 stories, with only eleven (16%) actually from the war zone itself.
If this keeps up, I might start to wonder whether the MSM has an agenda or something.