Don't forget that sometimes the source -- regardless of its officiality or intended honesty -- can frequently get its own facts scrambled.
Happens more often than you might think, especially in cases like this where information is unclear. Sometimes the journo has to rely on what he's being told, and assume that an airline spokesman knows what he's talking about.
It's obvious to you and me that a 737 can't carry 200 passengers but there's only so much checking a journo can reasonably do -- otherwise where do you draw the line as to how much double-checking is needed?