Paper Highlights Photos of 48 Soldiers Killed in Iraq

Vickie Kilgore, executive editor of The Olympian in the city of Olympia, Wash., put it bluntly this morning in a column: "Today's front page is a dramatic departure for The Olympian." It shows photos of 48 local soldiers who have died (so far) in Iraq. The banner head reads: IN MEMORIAM. Inside, the paper carries profiles of each of the dead. John Winn Miller, president and publisher, tells E&P: "Although some will criticize us for editorializing about the Iraq war deaths, we consider this an intensely local story – as our editor so eloquently points out." Kilgore explains, "A Stryker brigade based at Fort Lewis, the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, has returned home from a 15-month deployment in Iraq. The 48 brigade members pictured on the front page are not among them. The Olympian chose to dedicate today's front page as a small but dramatic way to honor their service. It is not intended as an editorial statement on the war. Rather, it is the biggest of local stories. Nonetheless, we recognize that, whether you support or oppose our country's military presence in Iraq, this front page display will generate strong feelings. More