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The New York Times changed a headline on President Donald Trump and mass shootings after it sparked some outrage on the Internet from Trump opponents. The headline originally read: “Trump urges unity vs. racism,” and some people were so outraged by the headline that they started sharing the hashtag #CancelNYT on Twitter.
President Trump had given a statement on the mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, sparking the news coverage. According to USA Today, “The headline ran in the Times’ first print edition and was changed in subsequent editions.”
Here’s what you need to know:
The New York Times Says the Headline Was ‘Flawed’
According to Fox News, the Times’ second edition of the front page hours “later revealed that the headline had been changed to ‘Assailing Hate But Not Guns.’ Its website also showed a similar headline: ‘Trump Condemns Bigotry but Doesn’t Call for Major New Guns Laws.'”
The Times said it committed an error.
Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy told Fox News in a statement: “The original headline was flawed and was changed for all editions of the paper following the first edition. The headline in question never appeared online, only in the first print edition.”
Some Democrats criticized the headline. “Let this front page serve as a reminder of how white supremacy is aided by – and often relies upon – the cowardice of mainstream institutions,” wrote Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter.
Presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand shared the front page photo and wrote, “That’s not what happened.” Presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke tweeted, “Unbelievable.” Wajahat Ali, who contributes to the Times, tweeted: “I write for the NYT. This is a terrible headline.”
Ali continued, “We need newspapers and reporters and investigative journalists and anyone who will hold Trump accountable or else all we’ll have is Sinclair, Fox News and right wing media propaganda. Don’t #CancelNYT, instead keep demanding we all do better & keep us honest.”
People Wrote That They Were Cancelling Their Subscriptions Because of the Headline
Trump opponents leapt on the headline on Twitter, saying they were cancelling their subscriptions to the New York Times. The #CancelNYT hashtag was shared on Twitter.
One man wrote in a comment directed toward the Times, “We’ve had just about enough of your pretending to be balanced and objective. You littered journalism with your hit jobs on Hillary’s emails, overlooked the dozens of warnings on trump, and helped legitimize his inept reign of hatred.”
Another wrote, “What’s the point of protecting journalism that prints garbage? #CancelNYT.” A woman wrote, “You know what I hate? Having to cancel my NYT subscription bc they think it’s ok to pretend Trump’s white supremacist rhetoric never existed.”
Others criticized the critics.
Eddie Zipperer of the Daily Caller wrote, “#CancelNYT is trending because today’s front page claims that, in his speech yesterday, @realDonaldTrump urged unity over racism- which he did. But I guess they thought the headline should be ‘Trump Accidentally Says Toledo.'”
The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg was one of those who came to the defense of the Times. He wrote, “The New York Times employs 1600 journalists who do indispensable work across the globe. The paper publishes millions and millions of words each year. Sometimes it makes mistakes. Also, President Trump would like you to cancel your subscriptions.”