The New York Post has issued a retraction and apology after incorrectly reporting that the gunman who fired shots at former President Donald Trump was Chinese.
In an article published on July 13 about the gunman, the New York Post wrote, “The shooter, identified as a Chinese man…” The article was updated to clarify that the shooter was “identified only as a white male.” The publication apologized for the mistake in an editor’s note at the bottom of the article.
“In a version of this article on July 13, the Post erroneously reported that the shooter was a Chinese man, based on wrong information we obtained from sources. We quickly corrected the mistake. We sincerely apologize for the error,” the note reads.
The FBI has since identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Several Asian American leaders and organizations had called for the NY Post to apologize for their mistake.
Stop AAPI Hate, a non-profit organization that has been documenting anti-Asian hate incidents since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, released a statement after the NY Post issued the retraction and apology, saying they will be investigating the misreporting.
“What the New York Post did was incredibly dangerous,” the organization said in a statement. “Yes, the Post issued a retraction. But the shooting of a former president is, frankly, a shocking moment for it to have engaged in such reckless misreporting. It’s hard to believe the New York Post did not realize what was on the line when it published that false claim – the safety of Asian American communities. We will of course be investigating and looking to speak to the Post further.”
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Last day to get tickets for our fundraiser Up Close with Connie Chung, America’s first Asian American to anchor a nightly network newscast. The in-depth conversation with Connie will be held tonight, November 14 at 7:30 at Columbia University’s Milbank Chapel in the Teacher’s College. All proceeds benefit AsAmNews.
Eth-Noh-Tec has been presenting their Strong Like Bamboo program for 2 years now (Oakland, SF, Tacoma, Wa, Orcas Islsnd). Asian American tellers tell the stories of their racist experiences and how they worked through them. These stories of Asian resilience then inspire the audience to talk about their own relationship to racism in small groups of 3 with compassionate listening. All our powerful work, the gains in shifting the conversation and the minds of our audiences can be fragile or solid. The trumper Post and its careless reporting threatens the good work of so many of us. Thank you Anti-AAPI Hate for taking this on. A tiny sentence as an apology will mostly go un-noticed. Their reporting that the shooter was Chinese is reckless and will be what sticks in the minds of many. As usual, it is the victims of hate and violence who have to do the work of educating and healing while perpetrators continue their rampage of perpetrations. What an upside down world.
It didn’t read like a real apology. The New York Post Editor’s Note blamed “sources” for giving them “wrong information” but took no responsibility in not confirming it before printing. Were these sources the racist extremists at Trump rallies who project Trump’s hate of all Chinese? The New York Post then tried to take credit for a quick correction but it was quietly “corrected” without any notice of the change. They only admitted to the change after the backlash. And they minimized that dangerous racial identity as a mere “error”.
The two authors, Joe Marino and Chris Nesi, must know that claiming the gunman was Chinese would not go unnoticed. Was it intentional to stir up more Anti-Chinese hate? They must accept responsibility for their reckless reporting and issue their own apologies. Real apologies!