what's selling for journalism

After returning home from a rushed weekend of work and preparation for more work, I caught up on news around the globe and stopped at NYTimes.com for an Obama-love fest. There was a story dated 15 May about the Catholic pope’s visit to Israel that caught me attention. Interestingly, the entire article focused on the mutual hate of Israel and Iran. Hate, hate, hate.
Finally, near the end of the article, there was this small but significant sentence:

At an interfaith meeting in Nazareth, [pope] Benedict, 82, smiled as he held hands with Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders while a rabbi sang, “Shalom, salaam, Lord grant us peace.”

I thought this single sentence was worth the preceding 30 paragraphs about mans’ hate for other men. I also wondered why there wasn’t more written about this sentence–a sentence suggesting hope and peace. Why not write about the success of that moment, the potential to expand on that, and methods or opportunities to do so?
Instead, 30 paragraphs about hate.
Oh, and that’s not the weirdest part of this article. The final sentence of the article quotes the Mayor of the city of Nazareth–the city where Christians claim the son of god lived when he was on Earth:

The mayor of Nazareth, Ramiz Jaraisy, said he hoped the pope’s visit would encourage Christian tourism to the Galilee area. “He is Jesus of Nazareth. Not some other town,” Mr. Jaraisy said.

Sell it baby! Work that thing! Sell it like yo’ daddy taught cha.