the buzz log

After renewed allegations of military deception and cover-up on Capitol Hill, the sad, complex, and sometimes baffling cases of fallen corporal Pat Tillman and injured private Jessica Lynch returned to the Buzz.

Pat Tillman's death in Afghanistan by accidental fratricide has surfaced in headlines repeatedly over the last three years. And Jessica Lynch, a woman who became an Iraq war hero in a traditionally male arena, has reappeared frequently in the public eye. Both of their stories came together in a committee hearing in the House of Representatives, and we noticed a curious disparity in the Tillman-Lynch buzz. Queries for "jessica lynch" ranked in the top 200 searches. Tillman searches, meanwhile, ranked in the top 1,500.

The shifting accounts of Tillman's death and the effects of Jessica Lynch's media hype shouldn't really be pitted against each other. If true, the allegations of cover-up and deception in both cases are equally serious. Yet, from the Search numbers we can see that Lynch carries more favor in Search than Tillman.

We know from experience that an attractive woman can generate big numbers in the Buzz, but can that really be at play in the Tillman-Lynch saga? Is there something else about either soldier's story that resonates with the public? While we wait to see how far the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform takes the cases of Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch, feel free to voice your opinion. How do you feel about the hearings, the heroics, and what are your hopes for how the investigations unfold?