Demagogue

CNN's home page currently features a large head-and-shoulder photo of Natalee Ann Holloway. No, there's nothing at all new to report about the 18-year-old who left a nightclub in Aruba last year and never returned to her hotel.

But, y'see, this is the one-year anniversary of Holloway's disappearance. And the TV networks couldn't let that go by without recycling the large amount of footage they filmed and giving their talking heads yet another opportunity to drone on about her disappearance.

In a nation with lots of bored people and relatively few hungry people, many Americans need to add a little drama to their lives. Or at least the broadcast media seem to think so. Bloodshed in Darfur and earthquake victims in Indonesia don't quite hit the mark -- certainly not as well as a blonde, white girl.

Besides, something tragic always happens "over there." And so CNN presents another round of Missing-White-Girl programming.