Public news organisations, on the other hand, should definitely be held to the expectation of reporting on issues in priority of importance, with not a shred of concern placed on how popular the reporting will become.
This is not surprising at all that npr has been covering this extensively, and also nobody bothered to listen.
You're oversimplifying this issue greatly. The media can (and do) manipulate the public, their opinions and interests. Don't think that just because we're the "good" guys that propaganda isn't practiced in the US. "Trust Me: I'm Lying" is a good book about this subject.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drone_strikes_in_Pakistan
[2] https://hn.algolia.com/?query=drone%20strike&sort=byPopulari...