I can't answer for others but I know why it has my attention and I do follow other news stories. I'm a parent, I've spent the last 26 years watching out for my kids. As much as I like to think that I can protect them from all the evil and rotten things that can happen, I know bad things happen to even the most watchful parent.
Caylee's age; three year olds are about my most favorite little people in the whole world. It is magic age of learning and growth. It is hard for me to imagine that someone would not want to spend all day with a child that age.
(I know they keep calling Caylee a toddler, she passed toddler age 18 month ago, she is technically a preschooler.)
I was a board member of a Child Abuse Emergency Shelter. I went to family court and visited the units where child victims were treated. It opened my eyes to ways children are exploited, injured, and neglected. For this reason, I do follow many child cases.
The last reason is more, I don't know, hard to define. We've all known a Casey in our lives; the pretty, snotty, party girl who loves being the center of attention. She could get straight Ds and still make the A students feel stupid.
She's probably peaked in the first three years of high school and then couldn't make the transition to planning for her future. Casey didn't get there by accident either, her parents helped and I guess by judging their parenting, it makes the rest of us feel better about our own parenting.
So there go, this case has it all; two layers of questionable parenting, a missing vulnerable child and the *itchy girl who might finally be getting brought down. Toss in the vortex of news reporters, web-boards, dandies and carpetbaggers, it's a Lifetime Movie.