All the overseas majors have carried the news of Bali - CNN, BBC World, Fox News Channel, Sky News, and CNBC. Even the CBS evening news has carried film and commentary on the situation.
In the print media, the bombings have received front page coverage in the LA Times (in detail, with multiple stories and pictures, mentioning the extent of casualties, the number of Australians caught in the blast, the comments of Prime Minister Howard, etc, as well as some USA perspective).
The New York Daily News also carried the story, but only from the US perspective.
The New York Post story was similar to the Daily News (ie: US perspective, but with some attribution to PM Howard and Australia).
The New York Times, however, was quite comprehensive in its coverage (at least 4 separate stories, including pictures, and a strong Australian perspective). Both Downer and Howard are quoted in detail.
Some media outlets, however, have been better at carrying the story than other outlets. The USA is not by any stretch of the imagination perfect in its approach to matters of the world. But at least the more recognised and influential media outlets do carry their sway with respect to their international reporting obligations.
As for what the New York Times is saying, the following story is provided for general information. The other stories can be found on the website: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/14/international/asia
October 14, 2002 Australia Waits, Fearing a High Death Toll By JOHN SHAW
CANBERRA, Australia, Monday, Oct. 14 — Australians long thought their geography guarded them from international terrorism. They woke on Sunday to find they were not immune.
Thirteen Australians are confirmed dead so far in bombings in Bali, an Indonesian island just a short flight from Australia, and 60 are among the wounded.
Prime Minister John Howard said that many Australians were unaccounted for. "We must prepare ourselves for the possibility of a significant number of Australian deaths." He described the bombing attack as a "wicked and cowardly" act.
The government said that Australia's National Security Committee, headed by Mr. Howard, planned an emergency session today, here in the capital.
Bali is a popular vacation place for younger Australians, a destination comparable to Hawaii or Florida for Americans. It lies about 400 miles from Darwin, the nearest Australian city.
A group of Australian security, intelligence and forensic agents flew to the island on Sunday to join Indonesian and American officials investigating the bombings, the government said. In addition, the Australian Air Force took a team of surgeons and nurses to help treat casualties, officials said.
The most seriously hurt of the Australians are being brought home on special flights. Ten victims arrived in Perth, Western Australia, this morning and 36 were taken to Darwin.
Around 600 Australians who were unhurt were expected to arrive today on flights to Perth, Darwin and Sydney. An estimated 20,000 Australian tourists were in Bali over the weekend.
Among the Australians in Bali were players and supporters of the Rugby Club of Forbes, a wheat and sheep ranching area of 8,500 people 200 miles northwest of here. On Sunday night, residents learned that 24 of the 25 Forbes visitors were in the Sari Club when it was destroyed.
Three Forbes men are unaccounted for today and two are known to have been airlifted to a hospital in Singapore. The coach of the Forbes team, Brendan Hayes, said: "It's really terrible. It's like having 25 of your family over there and not being able to do anything about it."
About 50 players and family members gathered Sunday at the Post Office Hotel in the main street to listen to radio and television reports and make calls for news of relatives to an emergency hot line.
Sue Betland said her two sons, Steven, 21, and Scott, 19, were on their first overseas trip. "Scott rang this morning to stay he was trying to find Steven," she said. "We think Steven is in hospital somewhere with burns."
Mayor Alister Lockhart told radio reporters, "In a much smaller way for the people of Forbes this is what Sept. 11 was for the people of New York."
Australian officials said they had rated Bali as the safest destination for foreigners traveling to Indonesia, and travel warnings, including one soon after Sept. 11, had not included Bali.
Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer visited Jakarta last week to discuss the campaign against terrorism and intelligence-sharing with Indonesia.
His department issued two travel warnings last month after reports of terrorist activity elsewhere in Indonesia. That official travel advice noted that tourist services were "operating normally" in Bali.
