Why did the oil spill in the gulf of mexico gain so much attention? What made this spill so important?

Obama needed a diversion from domestic political problems - failure to get his health care plans passed in full, failure to improve the US economy,failure to close Gitmo (a major campaign promise). Obama jumped on the opportunity,and began Brit bashing and magnifying the problem to deflect attention of the American people away from his dismal performance as President.