Mr. Keith Poole
Editor-in-Chief
New York Post
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10036
letters@nypost.com
Dear Mr. Poole and the Editorial Team at the New York Post,
Accuracy matters. As the July 13 event in Butler, Pennsylvania unfolded, journalism took center stage as the world waited for information on former President Trump, the alleged shooter and the entire incident.
We understand that as a news outlet, being first with information provides you with a competitive advantage. However, it is more important to report accurate information.
On behalf of Committee of 100, one of the nation’s leading non-profit organizations of Chinese Americans established in 1989, we are writing to express our outrage regarding the inaccurate reporting that a Chinese man was responsible for the attempted assassination in your July 13, 7:39pm ET story “Gunman behind attempted assassination on Trump shot and killed by Secret Service: sources.”
With no factual information, the gunman was cited as ‘a Chinese man.’ To our knowledge, no other news media made this claim.
In this current era of heightened anti-Asian hate, Chinese Americans and the Asian American community are already looking over their shoulders on a daily basis. For years, political rhetoric has called Covid ‘the China Virus’ or ‘Kung Flu’ – blaming Chinese Americans for the pandemic. Violence and hatred against the AAPI population continues to be a problem in our country.
By irresponsibly reporting false information – that the alleged gunman was Chinese – your reporters have caused the Chinese American community additional harm.
It is disheartening to see that in a time when we should be fostering unity and understanding, your publication has allowed false and divisive remarks to be disseminated to the public. The Chinese community, like all communities, deserves respect and fair representation in the media. It is the responsibility of reputable media outlets like yours to uphold standards of accuracy, integrity and respect.
We urge you to take immediate action to address this issue and apologize to the Chinese American community that have felt the wrath of this error. We urge you to issue a disclaimer at the bottom of the original story citing the error in reporting and correcting the issue. We urge the New York Post to implement stricter editorial guidelines to prevent such incidents in the future.
By taking these steps, you can demonstrate a commitment to promoting fairness and respect for all individuals, regardless of their background. We trust that you will take this matter seriously and make the necessary changes to ensure that your publication reflects the values of accuracy, integrity and respect.
Thank you for your steadfast attention to this matter.
Gary Locke
Chair, Committee of 100
Former U.S. Ambassador to China, Former Governor of Washington
