Why Newspapers are Failing

From the front page of today's New York Times:

In Khazna, the explosions left two large craters in different sections of the village. One was filled with water mixed with blood. Witnesses said the explosions burst the village’s water main. The chassis and big wheel of what appeared to have been one of the trucks used in the attack lay atop leveled houses. In what looked like the village’s main road, storefronts were ripped up, and destroyed vehicles were tossed everywhere. ("Truck Bombs Turn Iraqi Village Near Mosul into Rubble")

What looked like the village's main road? Are they sending in reporters, or looking at the town on Google Earth?

More nonreporting:

In recent weeks, the authorities have managed to catch three of the 53 escapees from May and have thrown 51 prison officials, including the director, into jail while the investigation into collusion in the escape continues. The prime piece of evidence against the prison employees was the surveillance system they were supposed to use to monitor inmates. The video, leaked by law enforcement officials and now available on YouTube, recorded the jailbreak in detail. ("War Without Borders - Mexico's Drug Traffickers Continue Trade in Prison")

It's very reassuring that the intrepid reporters at the New York Times are watching videos on YouTube all day so that you don't have to do so. If only they'd tell us how many google hits turn up when you search for "Mexican Drug Trafficking," we could truly understand the situation.