New York Times changes its front page after being ripped for being too fair to Trump in coverage of threat to use the military in U.S. cities
The New York Times on Monday night changed its front page headline after the first edition was derided as 'possibly one of the worst headlines ever written'.
With America reeling from six nights of protest in response to the killing of George Floyd, and with
Donald Trump having taken to the Rose Garden on Monday night to announce he would send in the military to U.S. cities if rioting continued, the editors were under pressure to capture the moment.
The paper chose to focus on Trump's words, with the headline: 'As the chaos spreads, Trump vows to "end it now"'.
The New York Times was strongly criticized on Monday night for the headline in its paper
Jon Lovett, a former Obama speechwriter turned podcaster, said the headline was insulting
The online backlash was swift, with commentators noting that it echoed Trump's narrative that the protests were all 'chaos', and minimized the legitimacy of the demonstrations.
'This is a terrible headline,' wrote Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress.
'The Times is erasing the reason for the protest. This is exactly what Trump wants. To erase the treatment of Black Americans as the rationale for opposition. Shame on The New York Times.'
Ben Rhodes, a former Obama adviser, said: 'If the New York Times thinks this accurately describes what happened today, I have no idea what country they've been living in - they should just let Trump write their headlines.'
Leading Democrats reacted with shock and anger at the headline.
'You’ve got to be kidding me,' tweeted Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, congresswoman for New York.
Even several members of the media joined the chorus of complaint.
'Possibly one of the worst headlines ever written, and I used to write headlines for a living,' said Michael Dresser, former Baltimore Sun correspondent.
'NYT editor Dean Bacquet is a disgrace to journalism and ought to be fired.
The paper later changed its headline to read: 'Trump threatens to send troops into states'.
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