Swine flu overblown?

Swine flu dominated the news a couple of weeks ago as the virus spread out of Mexico and ultimately to more than 30 countries.
Indiana now has 22 cases.

However, once it became apparent the flu wouldnâ??t turn into a full-blown pandemic and kill thousands, the story began to recede,
and now the media is on to the next big thing.

Slate columnist Anne Applebaum argues that panic is a good
thing. Otherwise, diseases donâ??t get enough attention and people get sick and die. Malaria continues to kill in developing
nations because it isnâ??t news in the â??rich world,â?? she says.

Hindsight is easy, of course. No one was able to predict the severity of the latest virus. However, had news organizations
downplayed the story and the virus gotten out of hand, the criticism would have been deafening.

How do you feel about the way the story was handled, particularly locally? Was it overblown?