Saving lives, taking bows, making a buck

There's always a price tag. No good deed goes unrecognized by a press release or unrewarded financially when you're in the humanitarian industry. More good works by the U.N. in the Sudan. Catch the PR spirit. "The agency has said it anticipates that the air-supply effort in Darfur will exceed the Berlin airlift of the late 1940s." And the rewards?

"Dropping food by air is always an expensive last resort . . . " Then, the bottom line: "The agency appealed for funds, saying it has received only $78.5-million (U.S.) of the $195-million to cover its emergency work in Darfur this year."

Virtually every word of that article came from the press release at the U.N. web site with a notable omission - the donations.

Donors who have begun to contribute to WFP’s emergency operation in Darfur include the United States (US$46 million), the European Commission (US$4.6 million), the United Kingdom (US$3 million), Canada (US$2.9 million), Australia (US$1.4 million), Denmark (US$1.3 million), France (US$1.2 million), Belgium (US$1.2 million), Ireland (US$1.2 million), Germany (US$1.2 million), Spain (US$1.1 million), Norway (US$900,000), New Zealand (US$600,000), Finland (US$600,000), the Netherlands (US$600,000), Switzerland (US$400,000) and Luxembourg (US$100,000).

Shouldn't the article at least have been titled "United States sends aid to Sudan?"

The Guardian got the same press release but credits UK and EU with providing financial and logistical support to the African Union to avoid mentioning the U.S. contributions.