... or are we getting better at keeping everyone informed so that we can learn from the sad stories of the past?
The net is excellent at getting information out fast, but we need to be ever more careful how we read the reports from such accidents. The first versions out on the streets are usually the non-aviation media, who have a tendancy to over-dramatise and IMHO draw unsubstantiated conclusions from very thin facts (remember they are in the business of selling copies).
Moderators > Perhaps we should state the source of the information when presenting accident stories so that readers can know how much to rely on them (or at least whether the source is within the aviation industry or not). Some news services such as Rotorhub.com do not run accident stories intentionally because of the possibilities of misinterpretation (and "chinese whispers")