Fairfax apologises
The Sydney Morning Herald has apologised for publishing a cartoon depicting an elderly man with a hook nose, wearing a kippah sitting on an armchair with a Magen David on its back appearing to be using a remote to control bombing on Gaza.
The cartoon accompanied a piece written by columnist Mike Carlton highly critical of Israel’s actions in the current conflict with Hamas.
The Herald originally defended the cartoon stating that the caricature used by artist Glenn Lelievre was typical of his style.
In today’s editorial, the paper states “the Herald wishes to apologise for this distress, draw a line under the debate about the cartoon, and return focus back to the events in Israel and Gaza”.
They add: “A strong view was expressed that the cartoon closely resembled illustrations that had circulated in Nazi Germany. These are menacing cartoons that continue to haunt and traumatise generations of Jewish people.
The Herald now appreciates that, in using the Star of David and the kippah in the cartoon, the newspaper invoked an inappropriate element of religion, rather than nationhood, and made a serious error of judgment.
It was wrong to publish the cartoon in its original form.
We apologise unreservedly for this lapse, and the anguish and distress that has been caused.”
I assume the apology was not as large as the cartoon that was drawn? Too late for apologies, this filth just keep getting spread! it should never have have been published in the first place.
Do I get any brownie points for having cancelled my subscription to the Herald about two years ago because of the articles written then on the Middle East by Paul McGeogh, Ruth Pollard and Mike Carlton?
Balanced and fair reporting at the Herald has now well and truly disappeared down one of the terror tunnels criss-crossing Gaza with this latest Carlton and Lelievre double act – compounded by the Editor’s teeth having to be virtually pulled out with threats of legal action before he issued a belated “apology” for the cartoon whilst Carlton emerges unscathed.
Hope current Herald readers will now follow my lead and cancel their subscriptions.
I can assure them there is indeed life after the Herald.
That is what I call a Clayton’s apology.
And what about M Carlton and the filth he was allowed to publish?
You obviously meant to say “truth”.