The following headlines have been reported by major news sources during the past few days.  See if you can spot a difference in how the press seems to be handling the two different UAL employee groups: mechanics and flight attendants.

First, here are the headlines that relate to the failed wage talks for mechanics:

Now let's see what some of those same news sources had to say about the failed wage talks for the flight attendants:

Please notice the use of language here.  With the mechanics, the news sources use words that emphasize the talks themselves are being stopped, or halted---without an agreement by either side.  Like a nice game of chess, a stalemate.

However, with the flight attendants, the use of words like 'fight' and 'reject' suggest negative action strictly on the part of the flight attendants, with the news emphasis moved away from the failed talks themselves and on to the flight attendants having a negative reaction.  The two top headlines shown above don't even mention the failed wage talks.  They simply shout out to the traveling public that UAL flight attendants will 'protest' and 'fight'.

What wins the prize, however, is our very own United Airlines NewsReal:

Flight Attendant Contract Wage Conference Effort Stalled by AFA -- Nov. 7th, 2000

Hmmmm...

stall - v. 1. play for time when being questioned etc.  2. delay, obstruct
                                              -----The Oxford Dictionary of Current English, 1992.

By using words similar to 'delay' or 'obstruct', this headline takes the public's attention away from the main issue: That on November 4th, 2000, United Airlines and it's flight attendants failed to reach a wage agreement. 

Or am I just crazy this morning?