Alleged Tornado?
The cable "news" channels have adopted a strange habit in the last year or so: treating tornados like arrested criminals. They insist on waiting until the Weather Bureau does its official assessment before labeling a tornado as a tornado. Until then, it's an "apparent tornado" or a "storm that could possibly turn out to be a tornado". After the official arraignment, the numerical rating of the tornado becomes important... the newscasters will actually tell us if the Weather Bureau decides to upgrade the rating from F2 to F3. In other words, the damage didn't really happen until we get a Trial By Jury with Due Process.

Do tornados have lawyers? Is there a Straight Wind Anti-Defamation League waiting to pounce on a report that mischaracterizes an ordinary wind? (No, there wouldn't be a Leninist organization supporting straight winds. Gay winds maybe.)

More likely this is just another aspect of the Death of Common Sense. The "news" channels no longer practice basic journalism, no longer ask what part of the information is truly needed by their viewers. They stick to official documents, regardless of whether the documents tell their viewers anything important.

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Another peculiar bit of self-censorship: Referring to Rev. Wright's fiery Fascist speeches as "controversial comments" or "controversial remarks". Reminds me of old literary jokes like

"FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!!", he remarked.

"I'M GONNA TEAR YOUR GODDAMN HEAD OFF, YOU MISERABLE BASTARD!!!", he commented.

In earlier and more commonsensical times, wild Fascist speakers like Father Coughlin or George Lincoln Rockwell were described accurately by newscasters as wild Fascist speakers. This doesn't prevent the listener from making up his own mind about the appropriateness or validity of the speeches; it's just a factual description of the speeches!
  ¶ 9:30 AM