A report card on the progress of the Iraqi government toward meeting 18 benchmarks thrust the Iraq policy debate front and center, dominating the newshole for the week of 7/8-13/07, according to the Project for Excellence in Journalism. In fact, it led to a rarity in the young history of this survey. It's the first time we can remember that the top two stories from the previous week were knocked completely off the chart, and we mean not even on one medium's individual top ten list (the stories were terror in Britain and the Scooter Libby commutation). The 20% grabbed by Iraq policy also contributed to quite a bit of coverage diffusion in its wake, especially if you add in other mideast and terrorism topics, which combine for 34% of all coverage. Two old scandals received new life, the attorney firing scandal, and the DC madam story, the latter thanks to Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), who became the highest-ranking official to be tied in thus far.
Top ten lists
|
Story
|
Overall
|
Newspr
|
Online
|
NetTV
|
CATV
|
Radio
|
|
Iraq policy
|
20%
|
15%
|
17%
|
29%
|
22%
|
20%
|
|
2008 campaign
|
7%
|
8%
|
6%
|
6%
|
7%
|
4%
|
|
International terrorism
|
4%
|
x
|
6%
|
5%
|
8%
|
x
|
|
Domestic terrorism
|
4%
|
2%
|
3%
|
3%
|
6%
|
6%
|
|
Iraq events
|
4%
|
6%
|
3%
|
5%
|
3%
|
x
|
|
Lady Bird Johnson dies
|
4%
|
4%
|
8%
|
6%
|
x
|
x
|
|
Pakistan mosque siege
|
2%
|
x
|
11%
|
x
|
x
|
2%
|
|
2003 pizza bomber case
|
2%
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
6%
|
x
|
|
Fired attorneys scandal
|
2%
|
2%
|
x
|
2%
|
2%
|
3%
|
|
DC escort scandal
|
2%
|
x
|
3%
|
x
|
5%
|
x
|
|
US economic numbers
|
x
|
2%
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
2%
|
|
Harry Potter
|
x
|
2%
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
|
Health care debate
|
x
|
2%
|
x
|
x
|
3%
|
x
|
|
Immigration
|
x
|
2%
|
3%
|
2%
|
2%
|
x
|
|
2005 London bombers
|
x
|
x
|
4%
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
|
Heat wave
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
4%
|
x
|
x
|
|
Western state fires
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
3%
|
x
|
x
|
|
Iraq homefront
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
2%
|
x
|
4%
|
|
Global warming
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
6%
|
|
Congress
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
5%
|
|
PA govt. shutdown
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
1%
|
