The New York Times amended its original headline on the paper’s story about President Trump’s address following two mass shootings over the weekend that left 31 people dead, admitting the original headline was reductive and “bad.”
“The headline was bad and has been changed for the second edition,” a New York Times spokesperson told the Washington Post, referencing the original: “Trump Urges Unity Vs. Racism.”
After considerable backlash online, including from several 2020 Democratic contenders, the Times changed the headline to “Assailing Hate But Not Guns” for its second edition of the paper.
Tomorrow’s @nytimes tonight, second edition: @realDonaldTrump assails hate but not guns; China employs currency in trade feud, jolting markets. #nytimes pic.twitter.com/1fD4pVEbaF
— Tom Jolly (@TomJolly) August 6, 2019
The initial headline gained traction after FiveThirtyEight’s Nate Silver tweeted out an image of the would-be Times front page for Tuesday, saying it wasn’t how he would’ve framed the story, which centered on President Trump’s speech in the aftermath of the shooting.
Trump denounced white supremacy and condemned the racist manifesto allegedly penned by the El Paso shooter before his attack. But the President said nothing about possible gun legislation and instead harped on a list of Republican talking point responses to mass shootings, blaming mental illness and video games. Trump’s been roundly criticized for spouting inflammatory and racist rhetoric in recent weeks.
Prominent Democrats like Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) came out swinging, urging the Times to do better.
Lives literally depend on you doing better, NYT. Please do. https://t.co/L4CpCb8zLi
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) August 6, 2019
That’s not what happened. https://t.co/m6eIZOARcZ
— Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) August 6, 2019
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) pointed to the headline as evidence of why white supremacy is allowed to run rampant in the mainstream.
Let this front page serve as a reminder of how white supremacy is aided by – and often relies upon – the cowardice of mainstream institutions. https://t.co/ynjgtT66yI
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 6, 2019
