Is the American Media Simply a Rumor Mill?

After the fiasco of the report that 12 trapped coal miners were alive, later to find out that only one had indeed survived, I find myself wondering if the American media is simply a rumor mill. I can understand that there was a misunderstanding in the communication between rescue workers and officials, but it would seem that information of such grave importance should be handled with great care and verified before being broadcast nation-wide.
It seems to me that the whole of the American media is way too ready to jump on any story, good or bad, without verifying it. People are likely to assume that what they receive from the media is true, certainly they shouldn't, but they do.