Missing Alabama teen

Did Natalee's family try to portray a "perfect" image of Natalie? Did they think that only a non-drinking, non partying young lady would be one that people would care enough about to look for?

I don't think it's fair to assume that Beth deliberately concealed Natalee's partying activities on Aruba. Parents don't always know everything their children are doing. According to Natalee's Mt. Brook classmates, Natalee was not typically a heavy drinker, and I doubt that when Beth first arrived in Aruba, she had any idea how much Natalee had been drinking there. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't find out for weeks, or even months.

Furthermore, with respect to all exaggeration of Natalee's virtues by her family and friends, whether accidental or deliberate, it's important to remember the context. Natalee disappeared under circumstances- leaving a bar with male strangers- which would inevitably cause many people to immediately form certain negative assumptions about her character. With people asking "What kind of girl would get in a car with three boys she didn't know", it was only natural that her family and friends would feel the need to defend her. If they were somewhat overzealous in doing so, that was a mistake, but not one they deserve a lot of criticism for.

Also, if they were concerned that Natalee's image would effect how much people cared about the search for her, they were, unfortunately, correct. Compare Natalee's case with that of 17 year-old Taylor Behl. Taylor was also a telegenic "missing white woman", indeed one who was more attractive than Natalee, and who went missing at about the same time. But her disappearance was receiving less national media coverage at 3 weeks, than Natalee's did at 3 months.