Similarly, if the media do not take something valuable from the 2006 Ramsey circus, it will be an awful waste. Not just time and attention, but social values are at stake.

A plea from the breakfast table: Even in proximity to Boulder, The Denver Post could put the story inside the A-section on the second and third day.

CNN seized on the Karr twist as hot summer filler and ran with it, at first exhibiting a rather gullible tone. (Fox News and MSNBC were more skeptical.) With certain glaring exceptions (the New York Daily News backtracked after its first-day, front page declaration of "Solved!"), the media refrained from assigning guilt. But nobody, print or electronic, displayed restraint in terms of the all-out, massive attention to a new hunch in a sensational story, a hunch that seemed shaky from the start.

In past instances - remember Gary Condit's trial by TV - the media leaped to a guilty verdict. This time, reporters raised doubts and explained the phenomenon of false confessions.

The appeal of the pictures at the heart of this story has to do with "America's schizophrenia regarding sexuality," Felling said. The culture pushes sex while retaining a puritan streak.

For 24-hour cable news, there's no breaking the cycle when it comes to the Ramsey story. The story brings viewers, along with criticism and buzz, which brings more viewers.

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