Yeah, the sniper case was helped by some leads, but in that case the law enforcement was, at first, in a big hurry to put any new evidence out to the media. I think that if the police have evidence that would benefit from public information, that's when the media coverage and interest will help the case.

Of course, correct me if I'm wrong, but did they determine whether or not the two sniper suspects ever actually USED a white panel van during their shootings?