The New York press corps has outdone itself with incessant pope coverage, from the tabloids staking out the synagogue he visited, to every local TV news outlet yesterday hitting Ground Zero to cover his prayer for those lost in the World Trade Center attacks, to his final visit, to Yankee Stadium, where he threw out the first pitch. (KIDDING! He led the crowd of 60,000 in a mass service.)

But between yesterday and today, a funny thing happened on the way to the New York Times: You know America, “the land of the free”? Apparently we’re merely “a country that prizes individual freedom.”

In the web version, appearing online yesterday:

Before a crowd of nearly 60,000 people at Yankee Stadium, Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday ended his first visit to the United States as leader of the Roman Catholic Church with a reminder to the flock that “obedience” to the authority of the church, even in the land of the free, is the foundation of their religious faith. (See screenshot) [NYT]

In the version appearing today:

Before a crowd of nearly 60,000 people at Yankee Stadium, Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday ended his first visit to the United States as leader of the Roman Catholic Church with a reminder to the faithful that “obedience” to the authority of the church, even in a country that prizes individual freedom, is the foundation of their religious faith. (See screenshot) [NYT]

Video of the pope at Ground Zero:

Video of the pope at Yankee Stadium: