French Bread: Some recipes call for shortning, while others don't. Why?

The French government has legal standards for the baguette which calls for only flour, water, salt and yeast -- no sugar, no oils. You should be able to make a beautiful loaf with just these ingredients.

that "This is a bread which is somewhat like a bread baked in France."  That's a bit long for a title.  If I were to guess (which I am), I'd guess that the recipe writer was probably from the US and playing to the preceived tastes of his/her audience, or focused more on the bread's shape, instead of worrying about absolute authenticity.

I recently baked Clayton's Blue Ribbon French Bread which features butter and non-fat dry milk.  As Crider notes, those aren't on the French government's ingredient list for baguettes.  However, it played well for the judges at the Indiana fair where the bread was entered in competition.

Considering how many different kinds of bread are baked in France, we Americans probably need a better descriptor than "French" when speaking of a particular type of bread.

Paul