Two days after Princess Diana's death, Joseph Lelyveld, executive editor of the New York Times, sat in his office comparing two front pages from the Sunday paper. One had a typically Times-worthy story at the top of the right-hand column--about a new study documenting the number of illegal Mexican workers in the U.S. In the later edition, Diana's death had supplanted it as the lead story. The paper was fast on its feet with the late-breaking news: trucks heading out to the Hamptons, weekend hangout of the media elite, were even turned back so the old edition could be replaced.
Yet...