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TwitterBarack Obama and John McCain: New Yorker cover is 'tasteless and offensive'
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's campaign is furious over a New Yorker mag cover illustration of a Muslim-garbed Obama fist-bumping his wife, Michelle, wearing an Angela Davis afro, a camo jumpsuit, and a rifle slung over her shoulder. An American flag burns in the fireplace.
Obama's camp calls it "tasteless and offensive." So for that matter does presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain's camp.
The New Yorker insists it's just satire.
The issue, which goes on sale Monday, contains a story about Obama's political beginnings in Chicago politics. The New Yorker press release says: " 'The Politics of Fear' artist Barry Blitt satirizes the use of scare tactics and misinformation in the presidential election to derail Barack Obama's campaign."
OK, but does everyone get that? I mean, average folks, outside of the select, elitist group of highly educated, intellectually superior (irony alert) New Yorker readers?
Obama's spokesman Bill Burton: "The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Sen. Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create. But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree."
According to Politico, McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds e-mailed, "We completely agree with the Obama campaign, it's tasteless and offensive." Hmmm. Do I hear a suppressed gleeful smile? According to an AP story, McCain told reporters that he had seen the cover on a television report and that he agreed with the Obama campaign.
"I think it's totally inappropriate and frankly I understand if Senator Obama and his supporters would find it offensive," McCain said.
What do you think of the New Yorker's Obama cover? Is it a satirical commentary on election-year scare tactics, incendiary racism or just in poor taste and designed to increase magazine sales? Kinda like that Miley Cyrus bare-back photo in Vanity Fair.
Photo: cover courtesy of New Yorker.
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The cover is insensitive, tasteless and about as amusing as 9/11!
If it was the same picture but with me in it, I'd be offended, too. I'm sure it caught a lot of people off guard.
I am highly offended by this depiction of Obama and believe the New Yorker intended to defame and ridicule him in the eyes of the American public. I believe the New Yorker is guilty of defamation and libel and should be sued. The definition follows:
Libel is published material meeting three conditions:
the material is defamatory either on its face or indirectly;
the defamatory statement is about someone who is identifiable to one or more persons; and,
the material must be distributed to someone other than the offended party; i.e. published, as distinguished from slander.
LOL. Did John McCain make these statements with a straight face? I don't believe for one second he and his crew aren't savoring this.
it is awful and racsist come give that man a chance
I'll be waiting for their cover with McCain up on the cross for how he uses his fake Christianity and his time as a POW to score political points.
Or their cover with Bush dressed up as a sadistic priest from the Spanish Inquisition, using his self-righteous brand of Christianity to legitimize torturing people.
Or Lieberman in a skull cap with curly sideburns and a machine gun blazing away like Rambo in the deserts of Palestine.
Oh wait... those things are offensive to white people.
They have no place on the covers of major magazines in America.
That space in America is reserved for mocking people who happen to be the same color as Black Panthers and Arab militants.
America's racist double standard on display for all the world to see.
Congrats New Yorker.
it is awful and racsist come give that man a chance
It's the New Yorker ... it's so obvious it's just satire.
It's about time someone printed this. No one was touching this subject because they were afraid of getting dirty. And Obama is getting away clean because he is black, didn't serve in the army, has no real experience. Would you give a CEO position to someone who just came out of college and has no real experience? If NO, then why would you give a college grad. a position of CEO to the most powerful country in the world?
The truth at last!
Regardless of their liberal intent, the lefties at New Yorker once again show their elitist density.