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The Amanda Knox story did not really belong on the nightly news agenda. All three newscasts implicitly acknowledged that the lurid murder trial in Perugia was more sensational than substantive by having their correspondents preview primetime newsmagazine coverage of the case. Elizabeth Vargas cross-promoted 20/20 on ABC. Allen Pizzey publicized 48 Hours Mystery on CBS. On NBC, Keith Miller offered a trailer for Dateline.
What was so sensational about Knox, the 22-year-old coed from Seattle, and her dead roommate Meredith Kercher, an English exchange student? ABC's Vargas characterized the prosecution as depicting Knox as "a she-devil" while the defense called her "an exuberant young woman." NBC's Miller paraphrased a prosecution allegation that Knox "attempted to lure Kercher into a sex game and when she refused Knox slit her throat" and later that Knox was "seeking vengeance against a roommate who complained that she was promiscuous." As for CBS' Pizzey: "The prosecution painted Knox as a promiscuous, manipulative liar with low personal hygiene standards."
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