What many in the Western media have billed as the world’s the biggest funeral since the death of Winston Churchill hasn’t exactly started out that way, as reported by The Washington Times on Dec. 10, 2013.
Both in Great Britain and the United States have major news organizations gushed at the predicted outpouring of sheer numbers at the commemorations for Mandela.
The Mirror of London, England and America’s New York City-based MSNBC have both name dropped Britain’s famed World War II Prime Minister Winston Churchill, claiming that the State Funeral of former President Nelson Mandela will rival the 300,000 who honored the leader who saw the United Kingdom through the bloodiest war in recent history.
The Largest Stadium in All Africa…
With the field of play completely cleared of attendees, the only seating at Soweto’s FNB Stadium that even came close to maximum capacity was the third upper tier.
The Washington Times estimated that only half the seats in the 95,000 capacity stadium were actually filled.
Organizers won’t be able to blame the rain showers on the low turnout due to rain being a sign of good luck in South Africa, as cited by NPR.com.
Although not 100 percent successful, certain Western media outlets such as NBC took care during their live telecast of the event to show only crowded sections of the seating, thusly giving the impression of a full house.
