ABC World News

On Friday, I watched ABC's World News hosted by Charlie Gibson. Shockingly, "Swine Flu Hysteria" wasn't the lead story. Instead, Justice David Souter's announcement that he would be retiring at the end of the court's current term opened the program. Predictably, swine flu updates followed, as they had been the program's lead story for the past week. Short segments on a speech Hillary Clinton had given, a photo showing Fidel Castro wearing a pin with American and Cuban flags, Chrysler's restructuring plan, the weight loss drug, Hyrdoxycut, being recalled for being linked to liver damage, and updates on the flooding in the Midwest.

In terms of importance, the stories were, as they often are, out of place. Arguably, the last two stories are currently affecting the greatest number of people. However, they are far less sensational and "big" as the swine flu craze and Souter's impending retirement, Obama's reaction to it, and Souter's potential replacements.