I should imagine that if anything similar happened to Mr & Mrs Average's child, then yes, it would get as much media coverage at the beginning- remember Shannon Matthews?
The Mccanns astonishing, and fully understood, relentless style of keeping the media informed at every outcome has kept this awful story to the fore of most of our minds, whereas most parents might sit back and wallow in their (again understandable) grief in private, thus allowing the public to forget.
Hello Derek darlin xxx