I try to run a fairly news-ignorant operation here, but this was too good to pass up: Cubs fans accused of beating White Sox fan, says the Associated Press by way of the Chicago Tribune. Despite not mentioning what actually led to said assault, their trusty copywriter apparently deemed the baseball allegiances to be the most important element of what happened. This is called “baiting the reader,” more bluntly referred to as sensationalism, but more importantly just about the saddest commentary on the state of news in America yet for either of two reasons.

• Pitting this as a Cubs/Sox thing is the only way to get readers around here.
• Savage, non-sports-related beatings are not news in and of themselves anymore.

So much for giving the audience credit.