*Following that contentious interview with former President Donald Trump last week at the National Association of Black Journalists/NABJ conference, The Washington Post found itself in hot water for its portrayal of the event, which many saw as downplaying the severity of Trump’s comments.
The Post’s weak/wack azz headline, “Harris faces a pivotal moment as Trump questions her identity,” sparked widespread criticism, with readers and fellow journalists taking to social media to voice their frustration.
During the event, Trump accused Vice President Kamala Harris of faking her Black identity to appeal to voters. However, instead of focusing on the inflammatory nature of his accusation, the Post chose to spotlight Harris as the one facing a “pivotal moment,” a move that was widely interpreted as misdirected and inappropriate.
Prominent journalist Jeff Jarvis was one of the first to call out The Washington Post on the X platform: “No, Goddammit WashPost, it’s not on her. It’s on him and you,” Jarvis wrote. “She faces nothing but racism and misogyny. You, as editors, face the test of how you will deal with that. You fail.”
Julie Rodin Zebrak, a veteran D.C. attorney and political consultant, echoed Jarvis’s sentiments, supporting those standing up for Harris.
Norm Ornstein, an emeritus scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and renowned author, labeled the piece “disgraceful,” according to Raw Story.
Mother Jones editor David Corn chimed in, criticizing the neutral language used by the Post. “‘Questioning’ is a neutral verb,” Corn stated. “This doesn’t convey Trump’s racism.”
Political affairs analyst and businessman David Rothkopf highlighted a broader issue in journalism, emphasizing the responsibility media outlets have in accurately portraying racism, lies, and criminal behavior.
“If journalists do not call racists racists, liars liars, and criminals criminals, they are actively aiding the racists, liars, and criminals by minimizing or recasting and normalizing the indefensible. And it happens every day,” Rothkopf asserted.
The Post rewrote this headline and made it worse insofar as it backed farther away from just telling the truth: Trump made a racist attack on Harris. “Contest into new phase”? That is the editors’ attempt to say less: i.e., nothing. The Post is broken. 1/ https://t.co/cOqIUiE8Zt pic.twitter.com/kNbV5ckRzI
— Jeff (Gutenberg Parenthesis) Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) August 1, 2024
Eventually, the Washington Post altered its headline to “Trump’s attack on Harris’s racial identity moves contest into new phase.” However, Jeff Jarvis remained unimpressed, arguing that the new headline was still insufficient.
“The Post rewrote this headline and made it worse insofar as it backed farther away from just telling the truth: Trump made a racist attack on Harris,” Jarvis wrote. “‘Contest into new phase’? That is the editors’ attempt to say less: i.e., nothing. The Post is broken.”
Jarvis further criticized what he described as an overarching editorial failure, pointing out other problematic headlines from the same story.
“‘Tussle.’ ‘Raucous.’ No, racist. If the editor and publisher do not know or cannot bear to tell the truth, they need to go. This is not an entertainment story. It is the essence of the United States. My kindest interpretation is that these British news executives don’t know. More likely and worse, they choose not to.”
Despite modifying the controversial headline, The Washington Post’s initial response drew massive backlash on social media. Numerous users shared their dismay and disappointment, emphasizing the critical role of journalism in accurately representing racially charged incidents and holding figures of power accountable for their words.
The Washington Post used a black man, Cleve Wootson Jr., to make it seem like the onus is on Kamala Harris to prove that she’s black based on what a racist bigot said during an interview. She does not face a “pivotal moment.” She has been biracial all her life. Shame on the… pic.twitter.com/fy1gAWHeYI
— Island Girl – 100% Pro-Choice, Vote Blue (@bluepolitics_) August 1, 2024
@washingtonpost Please explain how @KamalaHarris faces a “pivotal moment” because a bigot can’t understand that two things can be true at the same time. Then explain how the editor who wrote this headline will be advised not to do it again. pic.twitter.com/CxQaNVBIYm
— Michael Eric Ross (@Michael_E_Ross) August 1, 2024
I’m sorry, @washingtonpost, what were you saying about Kamala faces a pivotal moment as trump questions her identity?
#WaPohttps://t.co/MU5zWmFzQI
— Jani Beg
(@begjani51) August 1, 2024
What a stupid headline. Here’s a better one. Vice President Harris confronts racist comments from her opponent, Donald Trump. Harris didn’t become black as her bigoted opponent claims, she was born black. He “became a racist.”
— MOSA (@mosaisms) August 1, 2024
The incident underscores an ongoing debate about media responsibility and the portrayal of racially insensitive comments, particularly from high-profile figures like Donald Trump. As criticisms continue to pour in, the Post faces renewed scrutiny over its editorial decisions and its ability to navigate sensitive social issues fairly and accurately.
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