US newspaper sorry for "fake photos"
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| Fri, 05-14-2004 - 1:17pm |
US paper says sorry for 'fake' photos
Claire Cozens
Friday May 14, 2004
A US newspaper has been forced to apologise after admitting that photographs it published apparently showing US soldiers raping Iraqi women could be fake.
The Boston Globe said it had been wrong to publish the photographs, which appeared alongside a story about alleged abuses, because they "were overly graphic and the purported abuse portrayed had not been authenticated".
"There was a lapse in judgment and procedures, and we apologise for it," said the editor, Martin Baron.
The paper's stance is in stark contrast to the Daily Mirror's refusal to back down over its claims that photographs purporting to show British soldiers abusing an Iraqi prisoner were genuine.
Many critics believe that the Mirror editor, Piers Morgan, should at least apologise to readers and say he had published the photographs in good faith.
But the Boston Globe case appears to be much more clear-cut - unlike the Mirror, the Globe has admitted it knew the photographs could have been fakes when it decided to publish them.
Rival media in the US heaped criticism on the newspaper's decision to publish the photographs, which appeared during a press conference called by Boston city councillor Chuck Turner to publicise the abuse allegations that even Mr Turner admitted were unproven.
Since then the paper has admitted the pictures may have been shot in Hungary and come from a pornographic website.
The Boston Globe story, published on Wednesday, was particularly controversial because it appeared beside the news that American citizen Nicholas Berg had been beheaded by terrorists in Iraq.
The newspaper admitted today it had not known whether the photographs were authentic when it decided to publish them.
In an article published today, the Boston Globe's ombudsman, Christine Chinlund, said the paper had "erred" in publishing the photographs and blamed "miscommunication among staffers" and "a breakdown of checks and balances". "Some news outlets didn't report on the press conference because the photos were unverified -- and there was reason to doubt them - but the Globe Metro staff decided it was better to write the story, raise questions within it, and let voters judge Turner's actions," Ms Chinlund wrote.
"Emotions about Iraq were running high even before the beheading of Nicholas Berg. That the Berg story shared the May 12 paper with the inappropriate photo only made things worse," she wrote.
The Globe said no one would be fired over the mistake, but that it would review its procedures.

It just irks me how the media is in this feeding frenzie to vilify the American soldiers. Now they have to apologize, but the damage is already done. I just don't understand why the media wants to make matters even worse for our troops by harping on this day and night. I think they are trying to lose this war just like they did for the Vietnam war and that just makes me sick.
I think that the majority of Viet Nam vets are going through some sort of deja vu or even reliving a nightmare. To actually have to live through the liberal press's manipulation of the outcome the Iraq military operation must be truly anguishing. To witness the current soldiers' plight (similar to theirs during the Viet Nam war) must also be heartbreaking. I know my Viet Nam veteran friends despise the press and their manipulation of public opinion.
The press has played a role in ratcheting up the violence towards our soldiers. And for them to hide behind the claims that "People ought to know EVERYTHING" and AD NAUSEUM is such a slap on the faces of our soldiers. You know, they can decide that stories can be toned down if it affects the lives of persons of interest. Unfortunately, they believe that our soldiers' lives are expendible.
Please explain what you mean by this statement, maybe I am misunderstanding your meaning.