On January 27, 2013, the Sunday (London) Times published a cartoon by Gerald Scarfe in which the image depicts a hunchbacked Benjamin Netanyahu building a cement wall dripping with the blood of Palestinians and various Palestinians’ heads cemented into the wall while they writhe in agony. The caption below reads “Will cementing peace continue?”
Reaction was swift in condemning the publication of the cartoon; especially on Holocaust Memorial Day. Rupert Murdoch, owner of the Sunday Times, issued an apology. Martin Ivens, Acting Editor, also issued a statement apologizing for its publication.
A meeting was conducted with Jewish leaders in London and it appears that the apology was sincere and accepted.
This is a good example of a company taking responsibility for its mistakes quickly and effectively.
To the Editor,
On Holocaust Memorial Day, a day to remember the most appalling atrocities carried out in modern history, you chose to publish a cartoon (“Israeli Elections… Will Cementing Peace Continue?”) that is not only offensive to the memory of the victims of the Holocaust but is also a blood libel.
The fact is Israel’s security barrier (of which the vast majority is a fence and not a wall) is meant to protect Israeli civilians against Palestinian terrorism.
Your publication of a misleading blood libel shows a total disregard of history in that what started as cartoons in the 1930′s ultimately led to violence and unspeakable tragedy.
You owe your readers and the world an apology.
Six days later, I received the following response.
I am grateful to you for writing to The Sunday Times and expressing your views so clearly. I’d like to apologise at the outset for the offence caused by Gerald Scarfe’s cartoon published last Sunday.
Its publication was a terrible mistake. The timing – on Holocaust Memorial Day - was inexcusable. The associations on this occasion were grotesque. As someone who understands the history and iconography in this context, I appreciate fully why publication has caused such offence and I apologise unreservedly for my part in that.
I sought an urgent meeting with leading members of the Jewish community, and am pleased to say that we got together on Tuesday evening. It was a frank but constructive meeting. Mick Davis, Chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, accepted my apology on behalf of the group and told the press afterwards that the community “now looks forward to constructively moving on from this affair”.
I hope you will find this reply reassuring, I thank you again for your correspondence.
Yours sincerely
Martin Ivens, Acting Editor
Lessons learned
1. There is power in writing letters-to-the editor
2. Good will can be repaired by responding to letters-to-the-editor
On 27 January 2013 21:19, martin cohn <cohnpr802@gmail.com> wrote:
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