• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Republicans
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Men
  • Trans Rights
  • Royals
  • Monkeypox
  • Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman’s gay relationship ‘The Last of Us’ (Ep 3) will be 2023’s memorable TV moment
  • Many self-identified heterosexuals report feeling attracted toward individuals of the same sex, study finds
  • Taylor Lautner thought Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s speech was planned

‘Newsweek’ Apologizes for Facilitating Kamala Harris ‘Birther’ Lies with Op-Ed by Former Chair of Anti-Gay Group NOM

Andy Towle August 15, 2020 Leave a Comment

eastman
John eastman

Earlier this week we reported that false “birther” conspiracies about Joe Biden’s vp pick Kamala Harris were already spreading on Facebook.

Now, Newsweek has apologized after it published an irresponsible and racist op-ed by the former chairman of the anti-LGBTQ hate group National Organization for Marriage (NOM), John Eastwood, who floated the same false claims in an opinion column titled, “Some Questions for Kamala Harris About Eligibility.”

After outrage over the opinion piece, Newsweek appended an apology.

Wrote Josh Hammer, Opinion Editor and Nancy Cooper, Global Editor-in-Chief: “This op-ed is being used by some as a tool to perpetuate racism and xenophobia. We apologize. The essay, by John Eastman, was intended to explore a minority legal argument about the definition of who is a ‘natural-born citizen’ in the United States. But to many readers, the essay inevitably conveyed the ugly message that Senator Kamala Harris, a woman of color and the child of immigrants, was somehow not truly American.”

“The op-ed was never intended to spark or to take part in the racist lie of Birtherism, the conspiracy theory aimed at delegitimizing Barack Obama, but we should have recognized the potential, even probability, that that could happen,” the editors added. “Readers hold us accountable for all that we publish, as they should; we hold ourselves accountable, too. We entirely failed to anticipate the ways in which the essay would be interpreted, distorted and weaponized.”

“As we said in our earlier note, this essay was an attempt to examine a legal argument about the difference between ‘natural born’ and ‘naturalized,’ the latter being ineligible to hold the office of president,” the editors continued. “In the days since the op-ed was published, we saw that it was being shared in forums and social networks notorious for disinformation, conspiracy theories and racist hatred. All of us at Newsweek are horrified that this op-ed gave rise to a wave of vile Birtherism directed at Senator Harris. Many readers have demanded that we retract the essay, but we believe in being transparent and are therefore allowing it to remain online, with this note attached.”

Topics: Politics, Race, towleroad More Posts About: 2020 Election, 2020 Election, Birther, Joe Biden, John Eastman, Kamala Harris

Related Posts
  • ‘You’re An Embarrassment’: Kimberly Guilfoyle Gets Backlash For Making Fun Of The FBI’s Skills When Raiding President Joe Biden’s Home For Documents
  • Trump warns U.S. House Republicans not to touch Social Security, Medicare
  • In tribute to rights leader King, Biden invokes ‘battle for the soul of this nation’
  • Many self-identified heterosexuals report feeling attracted toward individuals of the same sex, study finds

    Many self-identified heterosexuals report feeling attracted toward individuals of the same sex, study finds

    Published by PsyPost Sexuality is commonly thought to be a spectrum. If that is true, is anyone fully straight? Does that blur the label of what heterosexual means? A study published in Archives of Sexual Behavior …Read More »
  • Taylor Lautner thought Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s speech was planned

    Taylor Lautner thought Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s speech was planned

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Taylor Lautner thought it was part of a planned “skit” when Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift’s MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) acceptance speech. The ‘Twilight’ actor presented the Best Female Video …Read More »
  • How to Get Tickets to Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour

    How to Get Tickets to Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour

    Published by PopCrush Wondering how to get tickets to Beyoncé‘s Renaissance World Tour? We’ve got you covered. Queen Bey will hit the road in May to bring her next iconic tour to the BeyHive. Beyoncé announced …Read More »
  • U.S. African American studies does not include material targeted by Florida governor

    U.S. African American studies does not include material targeted by Florida governor

    Published by Reuters By Brad Brooks (Reuters) – An African American studies course for U.S. high school students that was released on Wednesday does not include material that Florida’s conservative governor said pushed a liberal agenda, …Read More »
Previous Post: « USPS Says it Will Stop Removing Mailboxes from Nation’s Streets After Public Outrage, as Protesters Paper Louis DeJoy’s Home with Fake Ballots: WATCH
Next Post: Tennessee Highway Patrol Fires Trooper Who Ripped Face Mask Off Man in Viral Video »

Primary Sidebar

Adjacent News

  • Why cops kill: A Q&A with policing expert Dr. DeLacy Davis

    Why cops kill: A Q&A with policing expert Dr. DeLacy Davis

  • Rep. George Santos vows to stop lying : ‘I’ve learned my lesson’

    Rep. George Santos vows to stop lying : ‘I’ve learned my lesson’

  • George Santos campaign made suspicious payments to Miami Beach parking lot

    George Santos campaign made suspicious payments to Miami Beach parking lot

Good Trash: Going to Read It Somewhere, Y'know

  • Dennis Rodman On If He’d Ever Get Back With Ex-Girlfriends: “I Tried Madonna, I Tried Carmen Electra…”

    Dennis Rodman On If He’d Ever Get Back With Ex-Girlfriends: “I Tried Madonna, I Tried Carmen Electra…”

  • James Gunn Seemingly Confirms The DCU Will Finally Have Gay Superheroes

    James Gunn Seemingly Confirms The DCU Will Finally Have Gay Superheroes

  • Vanilla Ice Admits He Rejected Madonna’s Proposal Before They Split: ‘I Thought The Guy Was Supposed To Do That’

    Vanilla Ice Admits He Rejected Madonna’s Proposal Before They Split: ‘I Thought The Guy Was Supposed To Do That’

RSS Partner Links

  • The Groundhogs Had Different Predictions This Year
  • Hulu Cancels 1 TV Show, Renews 2 More, & Announces 2 Are Ending in 2023 (So Far)
  • Harvard Is Reportedly Inviting Soho Scammer, Anna Delvey, To Speak To MBA Students
  • “RuPaul’s Drag Race” winner Jinkx Monsoon on making her Broadway debut in “Chicago”
  • Serena Williams on the Oscar Slap: ‘I’ve been there… It’s not the end of the world’
  • Pippa Middleton plans to rip up the extensive grounds of her Berkshire estate
  • Every Football Player & NFL Wife Who Have Denied Jeffree Star Rumors

Most Recent

  • Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman’s gay relationship ‘The Last of Us’ (Ep 3) will be  2023’s memorable TV moment

    Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman’s gay relationship ‘The Last of Us’ (Ep 3) will be 2023’s memorable TV moment

  • Many self-identified heterosexuals report feeling attracted toward individuals of the same sex, study finds

    Many self-identified heterosexuals report feeling attracted toward individuals of the same sex, study finds

  • Taylor Lautner thought Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s speech was planned

    Taylor Lautner thought Kanye West’s interruption of Taylor Swift’s speech was planned

  • How to Get Tickets to Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour

    How to Get Tickets to Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour

  • U.S. African American studies does not include material targeted by Florida governor

    U.S. African American studies does not include material targeted by Florida governor

  • ‘Sister Wives’ Alum Gwendlyn Brown Claims She Was ‘Disappointed’ TLC Tried To ‘Exploit’ Her Bisexuality

    ‘Sister Wives’ Alum Gwendlyn Brown Claims She Was ‘Disappointed’ TLC Tried To ‘Exploit’ Her Bisexuality

  • Trump outlines plan to attack trans rights if re-elected, vows to ‘protect children from left-wing gender insanity’

    Trump outlines plan to attack trans rights if re-elected, vows to ‘protect children from left-wing gender insanity’

  • Finn Wolfhard ‘really proud’ of Noah Schnapp for coming out as gay

    Finn Wolfhard ‘really proud’ of Noah Schnapp for coming out as gay

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd

Footer

Copyright © 2023 · Log in

×