Cruise Ship Pianist Rescued by Fishermen After About Nine Hours in Pacific Off California

Two fishermen rescued a cruise ship pianist from the Pacific Ocean about 20 miles (32km) off the California coast after he is thought to have spent roughly nine hours treading water. The man was a pianist on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship and had fallen from the vessel into the sea. The two US fishermen said they spotted him in the water off Southern California and pulled him out. The nine-hour duration is an estimate of how long he was in the ocean, not a confirmed figure.

The Washington Times, on the right, leads with the cruise line, naming Royal Caribbean in its headline and describing the pianist as having gone overboard. It stresses the estimated nine hours and puts the distance from shore at nearly 20 miles off Southern California. Its excerpt does not mention the fishermen. CNN, on the left, leads with the two fishermen as the rescuers and says the man was thought to have been treading water for nine hours after falling from a cruise ship. Its excerpt does not name Royal Caribbean and gives the location only as off the coast of California. Both outlets agree on the pianist, the Pacific setting, the rescue and the nine-hour figure. They differ mainly in whom they put first, the cruise line or the fishermen, and in how firmly they state the duration. BBC News largely matches CNN, attributing the sighting to two US fishermen and giving the distance in miles and kilometres.