The Asbury Park Press has come under intense criticism after an article about Governor Murphy’s recent visit to CHEMED in Lakewood included a photo of a nurse filling a syringe with the Moderna vaccine with a racist and misogynistic caption beneath it.
The article was written by APP reporter Gus Martinez, who had previously come under fire for apparently attacking Lakewood residents at a funeral for not wearing masks, while he himself was photographed maskless at the event. It isn’t yet known if Martinez was the one who wrote the caption on the photo.
The story, first broken by NJ Globe, raised an immediate outcry from officials, who demanded an explanation from the APP over the caption.
“This is beyond the pale and disgusting,” State Sen. Vin Gopal wrote on Twitter. “Asbury Park Press needs to provide an explanation and apology ASAP on why and how this was posted.”
State Senator Bob Singer, who represents Lakewood, said the photo caption was “horrific” and that it “denigrates a nurse working on the front lines based on her religion and gender.”
Governor Murphy’s press secretary, Alyana Alfaro Post, tweeted Governor Murphy’s resentment of the caption, writing, “The @AsburyParkPress @Gannett photo caption was unacceptable, and taking it down without adequate explanation is not enough. We need answers about how and why this happened, and why such crude, misogynistic, and anti-Semitic language was published.”
Governor Murphy at his Monday press conference directly slammed the caption, saying, “I frankly didn’t believe it. I read it with my own eyes; it’s unfathomable someone wrote that even privately. Someone has to pay, someone has to pay a price for that. It’s incredibly offensive – even the apology missed the point. Completely utterly unacceptable, offensive on many levels. I can’t believe in this day and age we get something like this written in someone’s diary, let alone online.”
Lakewood Board of Education attorney Michael Inzelbuch on Monday morning emailed the APP saying he had been contacted by “numerous individuals, entities, local, County, and State officials as to this alleged incident,” as well as Lakewood school students and staff who were “appalled,” and demanded the APP explain how the incident occurred, “especially in light of our on-going efforts to combat stereotyping, racism, and the like.”
The executive editor of the APP, Paul D’Ambrosio, responded to the email with an apology, but without a clear explanation of how the photo with the caption was ever posted, or what actions had been taken, or will be taken in the future, to ensure that a similar incident will not happen again. It also does not say whether the reporter, Gus Martinez, was responsible for the caption.
“Late on March 20, a photo ran on APP.com with an unapproved and offensive caption. The photo was removed March 21 as soon as it was brought to our attention. As executive editor of the Asbury Park Press, I apologize deeply to women, the Lakewood Jewish community, the Asian American community and all our readers,” the apology states. “The words in the caption were totally unacceptable and in no way reflect the principles and practices of the staff of the Press and Gannett. The Press and Gannett have a long history of fighting for inclusiveness, diversity and women’s rights. We took immediate and significant action once we became aware of the issue, and we changed our online procedures to ensure such an event never happens again.”
Mr. Inzelbuch slammed the apology, saying the APP had not done nearly enough for it to be accepted, and moreover, that it fits into the slanted APP reporting that the publication has engaged in for years.
“It is not for me, nor anyone individually, to accept your apology,” Inzelbuch wrote back. “Moreover, no one should, or can accept your apology for numerous reasons, including, but not limited, to:
1. This is not the first occasion wherein the APP has demonstrated a lack of respect for the Lakewood community – to wit – the entire Lakewood community – not only the Orthodox Jewish community, albeit with a special emphasis on the orthodox community;
2. The damage is done – to wit – impressionable students who have been subjected to racist, reprehensible, etc. comments, this time have, unfortunately, seen that it is not a few (even a few is too many) who paint their faces black on Purim, call our football and soccer teams the “N” word, “border jumpers” and the like (recall the article in the APP I initiated) when they visit surrounding school districts that do not have the same student population as we do, etc.
3. Specifically, while we have been able to have continued discussions with our students… relating that there are misguided and/or uneducated people (individuals) who resort to racism and the like – how do you explain that a national paper (Gannett) is actually the offender, and lets it be printed ? Mistake – c’mon !!!
4. Why would it take more than 24 hours to offer an apology and only after I wrote you the email below?
5. Your statement is, simply put, bogus, too little too late.
6. You allege to have taken “immediate and significant action.” What exactly did you do “immediately”? What “significant action” did you take ? At the very least, a fully detailed Report should be produced today, albeit, perhaps preliminary in nature detailing same.
7. You write, in part, that you apologize to various people including the “Asian American community.” Are you looking at the same picture as I am? Also, what about the HEROES – nurses and medical staff who have been working throughout this great nation in trying to deliver the vaccine to those who are eligible and desire same? Where is the apology to them?
8. The picture and the alleged “mistake” actually fell right in line with the derisive and less-than-complete story. Specifically, in part, where is all the positive that CHEMED has done for all members of the community, especially the more than 500 plus public school students, their parents/ guardians during the pandemic who are people who are Latino, minority, etc.? I know – we know – your reporter knows – but – again … What about the fact that many people in Lakewood – minority or not – do not qualify for the immunization based on age or lack of medical conditions – our population across the board is young – whether they be of the Latino, Jewish, or any community? What about the fact that there are not many churches in Lakewood despite your reporter alleging that CHEMED only went to one church? The list goes on.
9. Where is your apology to the Governor and his staff who have done so much for ALL of NJ residents, and took of his time to visit CHEMED, only to have one of the hard-working HEROES turned into a pin-up?
Your belated response only put salt [on the] wounds.”
The apology is worthless if the individual who did it doesn’t publicly apologize and at minimum get sensitivity training, if not suspended. Enough of the disgusting ‘Locker room talk’ in PUBLIC! The Township Committee and BOE should reconsider their use of the APP as the paper of record for meetings and notices if nothing more is done. Finally, why do they think other Jewish communities aren’t offended by this? What about Jackson and Toms River and beyond? This apology is a joke.
this reporter should no longer be covering Lakewood as he is obviously jealous of the success and the progress in town and is looking with jaundiced eyes at their efforts to provide quality health care
Wow in any other media platform anywhere in the world, someone would be losing their job over this. And worse.
The APP “apology” is disingenuous. Why does it include an apology to Asians when a slur against Jews was used?
Identify this as bigoted against Jewish women and don’t make it look like another group was also offended.
At first I didn’t jump to conclusions as this can be the error of an office staff member that posted the photo from another source. However, the fact that APP didn’t answer makes me suspect that the verbiage originated from within. Additional rumor has it (and that explains the caption), that the reporter sent that caption as a joke to the editor and it was mistakenly uploaded. If that’s the case, the reporter shows obvious disrespect to a large population and is nosed based on religion. Whoever came up with this caption should lose their job.
In my humble opinion, the one and only reason why the Almighty gave permission for the asbury park press to exist, is only due to the fact that Hashem wants desperately that Mashiach should come together with our new Bais Hamikdash. When we see our enemies so close by, that will motivate us to daven asap.
Once Mashiach comes, the app will come begging and crying and asking us to forgive them.
I think Mashiach will forgive them because Mashiach is a real true honest gentleman and a real true honest servant of the Almighty.
That’s because they backed themselves into a corner and they won’t be able to get out, just like the rest of the lame-stream media. Good Riddance.
Why anyone even looks at this rag is a mystery to me.
They have proven time & again to be heavily slanted (to put it mildly) against our community & our values.
I’m living in Lakewood over 29 years & I have never, ONCE, seen even 1 positive article about Lakewood in their paper. Besides for the one on food, last year.
A whole article but the offensive caption is not posted and in order to read on app you need to be subscribed
Wow.
This is disgusting.
And I didnt even see the caption.
I don’t get it JAP stands for Jewish American Princess and not the Japanese. So that makes this apology at best worthless and at worst intentionally disingenuous. Regardless, that isn’t an apology.
After thinking about this all day, I just realized what the “Asian” twist in this is. As mentioned, JAP is a negative term towards Jewish women. The the same term can be used to describe Japanese. The stupid editor who apologized didn’t even know what he was apologizing for or to whom. That’s how sincere the apology was.
On a serious note. What likely happened is that the person captioning the photos made ten comments as a “locker room
Joke” as some disgusting men seem to think is ok and the publisher either missed the “joke” or something like that. However as the governor said, to have someone make such a nasty comment in private is totally unacceptable as well. It’s sad that we got to see the inner warped minds of these “reporters” covering our local events. So next time a “reporter” stops someone in the street instead of answering their questions or allowing them to photograph you, remember he’s very likely objectifying you as he acts like he’s reporting.
(Not that I think the person in this photo did anything to instigate the disgusting comments, I’m just saying they showed us what they really think. Either hate or disgusting jealousy )
How repulsive in this day and age. The only reason I let that rag into my house is so that my dog has a place to go to when he has to release. When I don’t get that smut rag I use the New York Times. Same shtick dreck.
I think this woman should sue their disgusting brains out. Sick ppl. How can that be published. The fcc should get involved. Even the lowest tabloids wouldn’t make such a disgusting comment about a random healthcare professional doing her job. Who asked you to go around photographing innocent harmless ppl. There is definitely a harassment claim to be made over here.
New York slimes Washington compost and now we have the asbury park poop
The sad thing is that we have a governor of NY that says he made these kinds of comments to ppl that wrk for him to “lighten up the mood” so it’s no wonder ppl feel free to verbally abuse women. Adding in a racial slur and a 4 letter word just “lightens up the mood” a bit more I guess….