I'm sure you have this cartoon from the NY Post recently and all the controversy that followed.
I do not think anyone at the Post is stupid enough to publish anything that would imply serious racial undertones, and even an assassination attempt of Obama.
Al Sharpton seems to think so, and is leading the way to protest against the Post.
Although I wonder if the editors at the Post debated whether or not to publish the cartoon in the first place, and did they ever imagine all the ramifications it would entail afterwards?
I took a ethics class last year and my professor would have loved to debated about whether this cartoon should have been published.
I do not think anyone at the post even gave the cartoon a second thought because clearly it was meant to be seen as a parody of the monkey shooting in Connecticut.
But many are willing to disagree including Mr. Al Sharpton.
What would you do if it were your newsroom?
Well, first and foremost I had not seen this picture before. Whether this picture had context at all, I was just appalled seeing a poor monkey shot on the ground like that. I mean what would PETA think... No but in all seriousness I can see both the points you stated above. I definitely can see why people would see a racial representation by the animal. I honestly do not think the paper realized the allegations that would follow after being published. This would probably be a good picture for Visual COMM and COMM Law too.
ReplyDeleteWhoever said change happens overnight?
ReplyDeleteThere are some things you have to dust off when it comes to the infamous Rev. Al Sharptons "legal justice" debates but this one(depends on your personal beliefs) by far is the most agreeable argument as the picture clearly depicts a couple things.
First, take into consideration that even with a bi-racial president in the White House, America's deep secret still lingers in the mist. Some people choice to ignore it, which is a reasonable argument of why some would not think twice about the image depicted as racist.
Now did the NY Post publish the cartoon, unconsciously thinking it would cause controversy? Hello, America. Did Brittney Spears shave her head because she wanted to feel the sun on her face?
Its the news WE love drama.
Besides, when is the last time you tuned into the news or picked up a newspaper to get the weather?
The last conclusion comes to this. If you actually analyze this message, why the monkey? Why not a donkey or elephant? Isn’t it ironic to you (Americans)who lived before ( civil rights movement) and made it through and breaths today, remember such racial slurs used to depict a certain race? Or because we allowed a bi-racial man to enter the white house America has somehow buried the past and all the sudden “overcome?”
Ignorance is bliss, but let us not look backwards, as one could see in this picture but move forward people. And if you clearly cannot sit and stare at the image and not see the cruel reality behind it..…then your clearly blind to ignorance.
And how many cops does it take to kill a monkey anyway? Who was in charge of writing the previous stimulus bill? And why, use a monkey?