The media is frequently criticized for being too negative, and many believe that — regardless of the cause — news organizations deliberately want to paint reality with the darkest colors possible. Good news is allegedly downplayed in favor of the headline-grabbing bad news.

But good news does happen, even if it’s buried on page A8 or resigned to the twelfth paragraph of a fifteen-paragraph story. So here’s a compilation of good news from this week (well, actually just today and yesterday) that I think readers of all political persuasions can appreciate.

[This isn't an attempt to gloss over the bad news -- if you find that this post puts slightly too much of a bounce in your step, or the sun shines a bit too brightly today, just go ahead and glance at the front page of any major newspaper or click through the home page of the New York Times for an antidote.]

The good news for the week of Friday, August 1, 2008:

• Combat deaths in Iraq fall to lowest level of entire war in July. Only five American troops were killed in combat in July — the lowest monthly total since the invasion began in 2003. By comparison, 66 U.S. troops died in combat in Iraq in July 2007. See the Washington Post’s graph here.

• Shorter tours for U.S. soldiers in Iraq. President Bush announced yesterday:

“The progress in Iraq has allowed us to continue our policy of “return on success.” We now have brought home all five of the combat brigades and the three Marine units that were sent to Iraq as part of the surge. The last of these surge brigades returned home this month. And later this year, General Petraeus will present me his recommendations on future troop levels — including further reductions in our combat forces as conditions permit.

As part of the “return on success” policy, we are also reducing the length of combat tours in Iraq. Beginning tomorrow [Friday, August 1] troops deploying to Iraq will serve 12-month tours instead of 15-month tours. This will ease the burden on our forces — and it will make life easier for our wonderful military families.”

• Civilian deaths in Iraq fall in July. 387 civilians were killed in July, down from 448 in June. That number is less than one-quarter the number of Iraqis killed in July 2007 (1,650).

• GDP grows 1.9 percent in second quarter. Not too shabby. Yes, there’s plenty of other gloomy economic news this week, but as The Economist notes, the fact that the American economy is still defying recession — “despite the considerable handicaps of a badly damaged banking system, a big jump in oil prices and the ongoing housing bust” — is “remarkable.” “We’re still on the right road,” the Economist says. “The long-awaited American recession might still be some way off.”

• Missouri and Illinois both make the Top 25 NCAA coaches’ poll. Both the University of Missouri and the University of Illinois ranked among the top 25 NCAA Division I football teams in USA Today’s pre-season coaches poll. Missouri was #7 and Illinois snagged #19.

• University of Missouri receives record number of applications. From the P-D today:

COLUMBIA, MO. — University of Missouri-Columbia administrators don’t exactly know why so many more students are flocking to its campus this year — and to what extent the Chase Daniel effect may be giving it extra yardage on the enrollment front.

[...]school administrators have been focusing their energies on finding room for an extra 500 to 700 freshmen this fall over last year’s class of 5,000 students. That’s a 10 percent to 15 percent increase to make what will be the school’s largest freshman class in history.

Couple that with increases in transfer students and graduate students and MU is expecting 1,900 more students overall, which will make it close to reaching its target enrollment set several years ago of 30,000.

• Phoenix Mars lander finds proof of water on Mars. The University of Arizona-led mission’s rover has found “conclusive proof of water” in a soil sample collected on the surface of Mars. The Phoenix program was scheduled to end in August but has proven so successful that NASA is extending it five extra weeks.

• MIT researcher finds efficient way to store solar energy. The new technology could make it practical for average homeowners to store solar energy for electricity use even at night. Currently, most homes with solar panels use the sun’s energy during the day, but have to draw on the electrical grid for power at night. But the new technology would allow solar power to be used 24/7, which according to MIT Professor Daniel Nocera, would allow solar power to truly become a viable energy option.

• Also, although not really “news” per se, this video made me smile today. Queen Rania (the young, intelligent, and drop-dead gorgeous wife of King Abdullah II of Jordan) is called the “Queen of YouTube” for her efforts to promote tolerance and bridge the cultural divide between Arabs and Westerners via YouTube. She has her own (very popular) YouTube channel. Check out the video, featuring several Arab comedians.

Anyway, if people like this idea, I’ll consider making it a weekly feature (and have a more thorough roundup of stories from throughout the week in the future).