The New York Times is a past master at reporting FWPs (First-World-Problems).
Exhibit Umpteen from Sunday’s edition:
A Forensic Approach to a Sidewalk Nuisance
Naples, Using DNA Left at the Scene, Cracks Down on Dog Waste
NAPLES, Italy — Problems? Yes, conceded Tommaso Sodano, the vice mayor here, Naples has problems. Unpaid debts have reportedly topped $2 billion. Many streets are pocked with potholes. The police department is underfunded, organized crime operates like a shadow state, and illegal dumps are scattered around what is still a grittily beautiful port city.
And then there is what dogs leave behind on the sidewalks.
Naples has no shortage of that, either. Yet to the surprise of some people, including more than a few Neapolitans, the municipal administration is trying to stake out a reputation as a civic innovator by positioning Naples at the cutting edge of dog-waste eradication. By taking DNA samples. Of dogs.
“I know some people find it funny,” Mr. Sodano said, smiling, “that with all the problems the city has, we would focus on dog poop. I know that.”
And we know this: The Times will leave no poop unturd – sorry, unturned – in seeking out the big international stories.
No matter how small they might be.
Campaign Outsider 
As Cleveland Amory once said: “I’d rather step in it than breath it!”
“All the news that fits” is exactly what, here? If I were the editors of the NYT, I don;t know whether I would be more ashamed our embarrased to have wasted print space (if it ran in print), staff time, and readers’ attention with this sort of story.
Yeah, it’s a head scratcher, Bill.