The Associated Press and other media outlets are coming under fire for censoring photos of the Charlie Hebdo cartoons that Islamist radicals used to justify a terrorist attack on the French satirical magazine’s office on Wednesday.
CNN and CBC in Canada also said they would not publish photos that show the cartoon, and the New York Daily News blurred the image in one of its photos. The AP cropped out the drawings from an existing picture of Charlie Hebdo’s editor Stéphane Charbonnier, who was killed along with at least 11 others in Wednesday’s attack.
CNN issued a memo advising its staff to avoid publishing images that show the cartoons.
"It’s also OK to show most of the protest cartoons making the rounds online, though care should be taken to avoid examples that include within them detailed depictions of the Charlie Hebdo cartoons," said the memo, according to Politico.
The AP defended its decision as part of a long-standing policy.
"It’s been our policy for years that we refrain from moving deliberately provocative images," a spokesperson for the AP told BuzzFeed.
The move prompted a wave of criticism from other media figures. The New York Post’s Kyle Smith tweeted that "Islamic terror has won" and Yair Rosenberg at Tablet called out the publications for "capitulat[ing] to terrorists & censor[ing] their content."
The Washington Post’s editorial board, while not specifically naming any outlets, wrote that, "publishers in Western countries have disgraced themselves in recent years with self-censorship to avoid being targeted by Islamic militants."
"Such acts cannot be allowed to inspire more self-censorship — or restrict robust coverage and criticism of Islamic extremism," wrote the Post.
Critics also noted that the AP continued to sell prints of a photograph of "Piss Christ," an art piece that depicted Jesus submerged in urine and another of Virgin Mary "decorated with elephant dung," which many Christians have called offensive.
The AP removed the image of "Piss Christ" from its website on Wednesday afternoon, although it continued to host the Virgin Mary picture, as well as photos of other cartoons and drawings that have been called racist or offensive.
AP spokesman Paul Colford declined to comment on the matter over the phone. He did not return emailed questions about the AP’s policy.