New York Press Editors Resign Over Cartoons
New York Press, like so many other publications, has suborned its own professed principles. For all the talk of freedom of speech, only the New York Sun locally and two other papers nationally have mustered the minimal courage needed to print simple and not especially offensive editorial cartoons that have been used as a pretext for great and greatly menacing violence directed against journalists, cartoonists, humanitarian aid workers, diplomats and others who represent the basic values and obligations of Western civilization.—Harry Siegel, EIC, on behalf the editorial staffHaving been ordered at the 11th hour to pull the now-infamous Danish cartoons from an issue dedicated to them, the editorial group—consisting of myself, managing editor Tim Marchman, arts editor Jonathan Leaf and one-man city hall bureau Azi Paybarah, chose instead to resign our positions.
We have no desire to be free speech martyrs, but it would have been nakedly hypocritical to avoid the same cartoons we'd criticized others for not running, cartoons that however absurdly have inspired arson, kidnapping and murder and forced cartoonists in at least two continents to go into hiding. Editors have already been forced to leave papers in Jordan and France for having run these cartoons. We have no illusions about the power of the press (NY Press, we mean), but even on the far margins of the world-historical stage, we are not willing to side with the enemies of the values we hold dear, a free press not least among them.
This was not an easy decision. I've been reading the Press since 1988 and have dreamed of running it for nearly as long. The paper's editorial staff has worked impossibly hard hours and has come quite a ways in only a few months towards restoring the paper's tarnished editorial reputation and credibility. I'm proud of the work we've done, and wish we'd had time to finish the job. I wish the Press all the best, and hope that under new ownership and leadership it can again be an invaluable read for all good Gothamites.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Do you happen to have Mr. Siegel's email address for forwarding?
Short version: How old is this guy Siegel? Twelve?
LONG VERSION:
Mr. Siegel made a good choice to resign. His argument sounds silly and IS silly. Alternative papers provide an important role in filling the gaps left by more mainstream, corporate papers, but this is beneath any decent publication. There's a line multi-wrapped around the city of censored stories and INTELLIGENT cartoons waiting for someone with enough guts to publish them. Ridiculing dead religious leaders? Why? Robertson has NEVER reached saturation in the market and he's still yaking away.
Sure, you can get your jollies depicting the prophet as a terrorist, then someone else can scratch out Moses with his own "lit" fuse (maybe a burning Star of David?), and let's not forget Christ all decked out for a high-tech Crusade. Then we'll all feel better, right?
You want funny cartoons? Show me a neutered congress sucking up to that corporate shill in the White House, a con so obvious he isn't even good enough to be called bad. Only then will I say, yes, NOW you have done a community service. Or how about Bush fingering his signing statements while spying on Specter, making sure Gonzo gains entry into that exclusive "Oaths aren't us" club. In the bubble he is saying, "That'll teach those Roosevelt lovers not to shut down my granddaddy's Nazi plants."
Or maybe a series of frames for bush answers when asked if he really thinks "Jews don't go to heaven." As Governor and presidential nominee, one went like this: "Well, I don't think governors have the final say in these matters."
Words to that effect. Reassuring, huh? Real presidential candidate-like, right?
Of course, the next frame could show Rove saying to him, "You're president and commander in chief now, sir."
Back to bush: "Right, and I can wiretap anyone I want in this nation of wimps and nancy boys who take it lying down, and Dick assures me Halliburton is building me brand spankin new detention centers."
Rove: "I love you, George."
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Postscript: Why HAVEN'T you done any toons on the Rove rumors? Maybe a little 3-way with Gannon? Oh, the perils of a vicious closet case getting back at the world.
And what about that comment by a bush White House lackey, made a few months after 9/11, when he balked at the "money-grubbing New Yorkers"? Come come now, we all know the phrase is "money grabbing Jews."
Makes ya proud, huh?
(Where's the REAL bravery, guys?)
And you feel deprived 'cause you can't slam all Arabs with the prophet-as-terrorist epithet. You actually think you are taking a noble stand. Unbelievable. Tragic. Tragic bubble you live in.
Martini warriors, all of you.
As a career counselor I find this to be a very sad decision by the editors, one made in haste and without a decent understanding of the issues involved.
There is no obvious equivalency between Western and Islamic values, but both sides have very few iron-clad thou shalt nots. Out of simple respect and decency, you do not flout those shall nots in a public forum accessible by children.
I have the freedom to post pornography on my blog, but that doesn't mean a newspaper should do so. Likewise the Mohammed cartoons.
Freedom is not a sharp stick used to poke others in the eye.
And if this decision was made out of fear, rather than respect, you still deserve the scorn of Muslims — and Christians, Jews and atheists.
Some things don't belong in a corner vending machine, but that doesn't mean they don't have a place, or that there isn't a right to express those views.
I think it's increasingly fair to ask the publish-regardless-of-the-consequences crowd if this is really about freedom, or if they just want to bash Muslims. I've seen all the cartoons, and Osama bin Laden's image would have been, in each case, more appropriate and far less offensive.
Good Riddance Harry. Maybe you will get a job at the White House.
As a former columnist for their previous venture, the website New Partisan, I would like to commend the staff for their principled resignations.
What has become of us as a nation and a free people when editors of newspapers in a place like NY City must choose between exercising their freedom of speech and their jobs? Thank you all for resigning rather than knuckling under.
Tough decision for an editor. Your editors are brave to stand by their beliefs and our precious freedom of speech. However, the Danish and French do not have thousands of their boys on the front lines and have not seen 3000 of their citizens murdered in a single day. Printing the cartoons is what the terrorists and fundamentalist Islamics are looking for, it's their rallying cry. In America we enjoy freedom of speech, but one will be arrested for yelling "Fire!" in a theatre, or "BOMB!" on an airline. We cannot abuse these freedoms if it puts the public in danger (even if it seems as silly as a cartoon.) Clearly hundreds of thousands of American lives could be endangered. George W. Bush, whom the press loves to criticize and ridicule, has done a good job keeping the terrorists off of American soil. Printing those cartoons would be throwing gasoline on a fire. We have been lucky, but it's only a matter of luck and time, before the terror again spreads to our soil. And placards that say "DEATH TO FREEDOM" could easily be replaced by suicide bombers and the unthinkable - a suitcase neutron. Unfortunately, there is no rationality or reasonable dialogue with fanatics. I applaud the decision to show restrait.
Good for you!! Now if we could get the NY Times, Washington Post, et al., editors to resign, we'd be getting somewhere.
All the best to those who took a stand and resigned. I am not all for offensive cartoons (being one of the followers of a faith that has been and continues to be mocked), but I cannot understand why this paper as well as many others in the USA have been able to so easily practice what I deem as censorship and discrimination by not printing these cartoons and for those papers that have fired or taken action against those personnel who have...I just don't get it...I guess violence really does get results and if you have enough people excepting it as "thier way" then it becomes the shameful norm. The press should be taking a stand against the violent reaction and not condoning it or fearing it (what good is the press if it is not free whether we or I agree with what is being said or reported?) What a pity...we have come so far but are still so far behind.
So you resigned your positions because the newspaper wouldn't print the controversial cartoons? Is this our cue to be moved by your "sacrifice" and dedication to freedom of the press? What kind of morons are you? It's painfully obvious that the rock you've been living under has made you completely oblivious to the world around you. Apparently, your narcissistic desire for attention has caused you to become ignorant and blind to the furor this whole thing has caused. Over CARTOONS, no less? One does not have to be a member of the Islamic faith to realize that the pain and anger being felt is unquestionably and undeniably genuine. It is REAL! Were you just so bored with your self-involved lives that you wanted to incite protests here, in this country, just to give you something to write about? I say resign then. Good riddance! Leave freedom of the press to those more understanding of the press' need to be RESPONSIBLE as well. Just remember, though, all is not lost. There are quite a number of fast food establishments that could utilize your talents. It's more suiting for you anyway.
free speech v free insults.by publishing these cartoons what will you achieve?put more oil into a fire...or just to pissed muslims and then say look at them they hate us....
I can't tell much about the decision process as to whether or not the cartoon should run. However, if it was decided to go, and then the mgt changed it mind, I can understand the resignations -- esp. if mgt and editors were critical of other papers for withholding the cartoon.
That said, for any media outlet to now publish the Danish cartoon is definitely a slap in the face of responsible journalism. If published, the media knows what the likely response will be from Muslims.
It'd be as irresponsible as the Newsweek reporters publishing reporters about the Quran abuse without getting confirmation.
News reporting has its own responsibilities. The media must take some credit/blame if they know a certain story, picture or cartoon will likely result in a certain response.
-- Mike
Thnaks for having a backbone Harry
What is the deal with these cartoons of Mohamed? Is he depicted having sex with goats or what? I don't know. I haven't seen them. That is because almost all the western media have effectively been censored by a bunch of terrorists who burn buildings and flags, and kill people. Certainly, with the scope of the events, this is important news and people have a right to know what the fuss is about. The media should stop bending over backwards to appease the terrorists. Get a backbone and print the cartoons. 9-11 was viewed as an attack on freedom, but these protests are not? They should be.
free paris hilton porn..
[url=][/url]
6 [url=http://by_chesney_from_had_hello_kenny.pharma1.info/chesney_had_hello_kenny.html]chesney had hello kenny[/url]
[url=http://used_light_towers.pharma1.info/used_light_towers.html]used light towers[/url]
[url=http://scheduled_caste_india.pharma1.info/scheduled_caste_india.html]scheduled caste india[/url]
[url=http://las_vegas_real_estate.pharma1.info/design_estate_las_real_vegas_web.html]design estate las real vegas web[/url]
[url=http://las_vegas_real_estate.pharma1.info/estate_las_real_tour_vegas_virtual.html]estate las real tour vegas virtual[/url]
[url=http://by_chesney_from_had_hello_kenny.pharma1.info/by_chesney_from_had_hello_kenny_lyric.html]by chesney from had hello kenny lyric[/url]
[url=http://las_vegas_real_estate.pharma1.info/estate_las_real_team_vegas.html]estate las real team vegas[/url]
[url=http://underfloor_heating_pipe.pharma1.info/underfloor_heating_pipe.html]underfloor heating pipe[/url]
[url=http://louisiana_office_building.pharma1.info/louisiana_office_building.html]louisiana office building[/url]
[url=http://national_association_public_administration.pharma1.info/national_association_public_administration.html]national association public administration[/url]