There is probably a couple of reasons people are saddened/affected/etc by 9/11 and not by deaths due to starvation, AIDS, diarrhoea, malaria, measles:
Proximity - This happened very close to us. People are inherently more concerned when things happen to people that could be them. The risk of starvation or dieing from an easily treatable disease is not an issue that affects us so directly as a terrorist attack.
The event itself - Planes crashing into buildings is extremely dramatic. I can't think of anything else that even comes close to that kind of impact post WW2. This will sound harsh, but it's true, no one hears a child dieing from AIDS or starvation in Africa. I wish this wasn't true, but it is. Our concerns are much more selfish.
Murder - Another reason this event gets far more press. The victims from 9/11 were murdered. You could argue that the people who die from starvation are murdered from corrupt governments not giving out food or medical treatment. But it is not as equal as the direct murdering of thousands by planes.
While I agree with some of your sentiments of 9/11, in that 9/11 gets pulled into spectrum's were it doesn't belong and has been used to unfairly take advantage of people. But that doesn't mean the event was any less impactful or tragic.
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