I think you have answered your own question in your article.  If Europe is extremely safe and a terrorist attack hits, don't you think that will attract more news than if there is violence in a violent place?  Dog bites man, that's not news.  Man bites dog, that's news.  In other words, what is unusual is news.  While there is a place in the news for scholarly reporting and essay pieces, in the end news is... what is "new".