I have a lot of gripes about the grammar used (or misused) by reporters. This one even drew Andy Rooney’s ire a few weeks ago:
Troop: A troop is a group of solders, like a company or a division. It is not just one soldier. Therefore it is incorrect to say “Three American troops died today” when what one means is three soldiers, three individuals.
Enough said. The world will little note nor long remember my puny efforts to preserve the English language as I learned it.