Charles Apple

Joe Strupp of Editor & Publisher reports today: 

When the Asbury Park (N.J.) Press wanted a Page One image to go with a package of stories on Gov. Jon Corzine’s controversial plan to borrow money against the state’s toll roads, a mere photo would not suffice.

So Executive Editor William “Skip” Hidlay approved an illustration for Sunday’s paper showing Corzine, a Democrat, in a hat and tweed coat, opening one side to reveal cars pinned to the inner lining like a peddler offering his trinkets.

Photoillustration by Jeff Colson/The Asbury Park Press
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Under the headline, “Hocking the highways,” the accompanying stories investigated how Corzine’s plan would likely increase tolls.

…The approach did not sit well with Corzine’s office, which responded Monday with a terse press release that included an open letter to the paper calling the image “a tremendous disservice.”

The governor’s chief of staff, Bradley Abelow, wrote in a press release labeled as ”an open letter to the editors” of the Press:

While working with photo editing software may be a useful tool for assembling gag photos or correcting minor imperfections, using it to manipulate the Governor - any governor - into a sinister character is not what we would expect from a responsible media organization.

As we enter the important debate on how best to restructure New Jersey’s finances to better serve the public, the free press must do so without their own opinion or agenda. Images that are nothing more than editorial cartoons morphed into photographs are fine – for the editorial page. But placement of such images on the front page of the Sunday edition demonstrates a blatant disregard for objective reporting.

 Strupp reports:

“We weren’t attempting to show the governor in any kind of sinister light,” Hidlay told E&P. “We were looking for a way to illustrate a very complex problem that is difficult to show visually.”

…The paper published the entire release as a letter to the editor on Tuesday, but Hidlay said no apology would be forthcoming. “We think the reporting is outstanding and frames the issue for New Jersey readers,” he said. “It is no different from what any other news organization has done in the past.”

Reaction to the controversy has been mixed — as you’d imagine. A reader who calls himself Puffaroo commented Tuesday on the Press web site where the open letter was posted:

Well, the APP doesn’t owe me any apologies. I thought the Photoshopped image of Corzine pretty much captured the essence of the deal. It was a riot to boot.

Another reader posted:

Responsible media organization? HAAAHAAHAheeooouuaaahaahaaa!!

He should have added: “It is, however, what we expect from the servile lackeys who serve their paymasters at the Gannett-run APP, though.”

That reader called himself DumbAsABush. Read into that what you will.

The actual story from Sunday generated feedback from readers, as well. The fourth comment posted was from Justaguy:

I see the new publisher has added Page One to the APP Opinion Pages.  

Someone called APP Reader posted:

What’s with the picture?! Has the Asbury Park Press turned into the N.Y. Post?! 

Strupp points out in his story that the partisan blogs got involved Monday. The Democratic blog Blue Jersey posted:

The Asbury Park Press editorial board has a history of partisanship, but apparently even their supposedly objective reporting is slanted. It’s pretty sad when the Asbury Park Press is putting out content on par with the Trentonian.

Another political blog, In the Lobby — which, I presume, leans in the opposite direction — felt differently: 

By publicly complaining about the photo illustration, Bradley Abelow made it into a news story. In effect, he gave it legs.

But we have to ask: Have Corzine or Abelow ever seen political advertisements — especially some of the ones that the governor’s money helped pay for?

The governor is the one who is making us wait until Jan. 8 before he tells us what he has in mind. He’s the one who’s been acting like he has something to hide.

Instead of sending out a press release complaining about the Asbury Park Press, it’s too bad Corzine and Abelow couldn’t send out a press release telling us how much we should expect in a toll hike.

Looks to me like the illustration — created by Asbury Park’s Jeff Colson — caused folks to stop and think and to form opinions of their own. Which is what any good illustration would do. 

Did this one go over the line? Is it closer to being an editorial cartoon than a page-one illustration?

What do you think?

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The illustration was created by Jeff Colson of the Press. See more of his work here. 

Click on the thumnails below for larger jpeg views of the illustration or the whole page:

Find a PDF of the Sunday page containing the illustration here (at The Newseum).

Find Strupp’s E&P article here. 

Find the press release from the Governor’s office here. 

Find the Press‘ posting of the press release — along with comments from readers — here.

Find Sunday’s APP A1 lead story here.

See readers’ comments to that story here. 

We first read about all this today via Romenesko. 

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