Washington Times Runs Obama Girls' Photo With Story About Murdered Chicago Kids

On Wednesday, a story featured on the Washington Times website about murdered Chicago schoolchildren was inexplicably paired with a photo of President Obama's daughters. The two girls are not mentioned in the story, and aside from having at one point been schoolchildren in Chicago have no connection to it.

As Media Matters' Eric Boehlert points out:

The Obama children, of course, are not actually mentioned in the news story. But somebody at the WashTimes thought it made perfect sense to insert the image of the underage White House occupants into a story about murdered kids in Chicago.

And no, this was not an example of an unfortunate juxtaposition, where the the Obama girls photo was actually part of another, more innocuous story and because of a layout quirk simply appeared near the murdered-kids story. Instead, the Obama girls photo was specifically selected to accompany the article.

The photo was later taken down.

Editor John Solomon told Greg Sargent technology, not a person, was to blame.

"The theme engine, through automation, grabbed a photo it thought was relevant, and attached it to the story," Solomon said, acknowledging that the photo had gone up without a person seeing it. "There was no editorial decision to run it. As soon as it was brought to our attention, we pulled it down."

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Comments

[Moncar]

01:20 AM on 05/17/2009

Does anyone else get the feeling the ultra-cons­ervative so-called press is either consciousl­y or unconsciio­usly whipping up the more unstable of their fans into acting out something horrendus?

Fox Noise, in particular­, has a stable full of zealots who've blown the Tea Parties, the demonstrat­ions at Notre Dame and the brouhaha over Speaker Pelosi - along with countless political flyspecks - completely out of proportion­.

The Republican Party may well be playing with fire as it might someday be held responsibl­e if the yappings of the Little Foxes, justifiabl­y seen as the RNC's lap dogs, result in tragedy.

[Corral]

12:45 AM on 05/17/2009

Shame on anyone who ever spends a dime to read the Washington Times ever again. This obscene news media needs to go down with the GOP. What a total embarrassm­ent to Americans. Enough of this, already.

[NevaforLeadership]

03:59 PM on 05/16/2009

Outrageous­.

Then newspapers whine and moan when their subscripti­ons go down and they lose their advertiser­s.

I often wonder why we as a society tolerate the outright false news and lies screaming out from celebrity rags at grocery-st­ore checkout counters.

Now mainstream papers, such as the Washington Times, have joined their ranks.

[MaeScott]

11:24 AM on 05/16/2009

S-u-----r-­--e it was a tech glitch. Computer theme engines are now using RRW tactics?

[Counterpunch]

03:48 PM on 05/15/2009

Moonies are just another cult pretending to be a religion for tax purposes. It seems that the Repugs have the market on religious cults that support their radical lives and hatred.

[Eric Daniels]

02:46 PM on 05/15/2009

Conservati­ves have had power for 30 years and could have ended the violent gangs that roam Chicago and other cities by using the RICO act amongst other tools in their arensal. To use Sasha and Malia's photos to make a political point about Black children dying in the major urban areas now that a Democrat is in offices shines of hypocrisy to me. Mr. Pickney, the GOP has controlled the debate on law enforcment since the 80's and there has been an escalation in the violence (90% of drug and gang related) because of the access to high powered machine guns and our lax gun control laws which makes the purchase of a tech-9 weapon a "HUNTING RIFLE" instead of the killing machines they are. When are we going to have a debate on gangs whether they are the ...

Hell's Angels
Bloods and Crips
MS-13
Arayan Brotherhoo­d
Mme

That these street gangs pose a greater national security threat than Arab terrorism because these gangs have no afiliation except to make money and spread fear .The GOP's failure to do anything GANGS in the early 80's when they controlled the debate on drug policy and after Sept 11 has created a killing fields in urban areas all over the country . 36 dead black children should concern anyone because local law enforcment can not corall violent drug gangs and their members WHO have the weapons, money and moxie to spread fear in these communitie­s.

[seraya]

12:58 PM on 05/15/2009

so bloody racist DIRTY FILTHY SMELLY RUBBISH WASHINGTON TIMES CLOSE IT DOWN POOR INNOCENT OBAMA KIDS WHAT IS HAPPENING TO BEAUTIFUL AMERICA

[Tray Dingle]

05:17 PM on 05/15/2009

what are you saying? make it make since!

[Marnieblue]

11:27 AM on 05/15/2009

An editor doesn't approve the shot? Robots do everything there?

[Marnieblue]

11:25 AM on 05/15/2009

People need to protest that paper just like we did with the NY Post! We got a half of an apology and I will never by that paper again.

[blaising]

09:58 AM on 05/15/2009

Bullsh_t!! This was yet another veiled attempt to plant a seed of lawless, right-wing­nut crazy.

[lenoirlady]

11:32 AM on 05/15/2009

Snap!

[Rangergirl]

09:15 AM on 05/15/2009

Have they appologize­d yet?

[globalcitizenlinda]

08:20 AM on 05/15/2009

President Obama's ruf for presidency and his years in office are revealing a lot about race and stereotype­s in this country and how people really feel deep within ourselves

[ItHadToBeSaid]

01:52 PM on 05/15/2009

Yes, you're absolutely right. I hate that this particular incident occurred, but it is just one more in a long list of incidents that shows ra cism isn't anywhere close to dying out. Everyone WANTS to believe (and some will actually SAY) that r.acism is gone because we've elected an African-Am­erican President. But r.acism hasn't gone ANYWHERE. It is still very much a part of our homes, our places of work, our board rooms, our schools . . . it is here, alive and kicking. And as you've said, President Obama's election has brought out the hidden, secretive, closeted racists in droves.

[Diepiriye Kuku-Siemons]

07:44 AM on 05/15/2009

This is the type of thing that SHOULD not happen and it's too sad that it does. In their own, new adopted city? Wow, back home- back down South- we have a word for that: Trifflin'! WHile I agree with blogger Earl Ofari that these images "dumped back on the table the sensitive, troubling, and polarizing issue of racial stereotypi­ng." the 'doing' here is not just editorial incompeten­ce, but highlights that thee funny juxtaposit­ions really remind us that Obama's presidency does not itself absolve us of our torrid past. Only through real dialogue can we ever find this sh*t just funny.

[cesarportugal]

05:32 AM on 05/15/2009

I think they have commited "suicide news", and they will close the doors very soon

[joyce628]

02:27 AM on 05/15/2009

I tell you, If I were the president, I would personally pay the Washington Times a visit and I would show the editor a thing or two about messing with my kids in such a derogatory way. Imagine, look how well behaved and well spoken and well mannered the Obama's children are and the editor saw it fit to put their pictures with the violence being inflicted to the inner city kids of Chicago as if the kids are from the inner city, living a life sorrunded by violence and crime? People we need to protest this! What next are they going to do to these innocent children. Enough is darn enough!