Breaking news from the Washington Post:
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) tweeted a petition and fundraising appeal that included what appeared to be an altered photo of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, drawing a retweet Thursday morning from President Trump.
The tweet marks the second time this week that a House Republican has tweeted a photo that appears to have been manipulated…
The tweet shows a close-up, red-tinted photo of Pelosi, with the lines in the House speaker’s face exaggerated due to the image’s unnaturally high contrast.
Here’s the nefarious tweet:
Dems obsessed w/ impeachment but won't send articles to the Senate. Why? It's bc they don't want a trial that will EXPOSE Schiff's illegal COORDINATION with the Whistleblower. SIGN & DONATE to #PressurePelosi to send the articles! https://t.co/g0D2tl9Px3 🚨https://t.co/w13xEv1sC9
— Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) January 8, 2020
If you follow the link there’s a fuller version of the same photo at the site:
That’s clearly tinted and the contrast is ramped up but it’s a real photo. In fact, I was able to find the original in a couple minutes:
And by playing with the contrast and color in Photoshop I produced this from the original photo in 10 minutes. Not exactly right, but it’s in the ballpark:
So that’s where this came from but the bigger question is whether or not this is at all newsworthy. The answer to that question appears to be no, at least it wasn’t newsworthy when Pelosi herself did it. Stephen Miller quickly found an altered photo of Mitch McConnell in Pelosi’s timeline:
The House has taken action to protect women from domestic violence, defend our health care from Trump’s attacks, guarantee equal pay for equal work, and much more.
It's time Mitch McConnell act for the American people rather listen to Donald Trump and special interest wallets. pic.twitter.com/sYxgSEgnFY
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) May 7, 2019
And these photos of President Trump appear to have been similarly altered. You can see every wrinkle in his face because the contrast has been ramped up.
We would be delinquent in our duties if we failed to #DefendOurDemocracy and Constitution.
This is about patriotism. This is about the future of our country. pic.twitter.com/O1EVzBkdk8
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) December 10, 2019
In this one Trump’s face is yellow and there are magenta blotches in his hair and on his collar:
He endangered our national security. He betrayed his oath of office by undermining our elections. And he abused his power.
The devastating testimony corroborated evidence of bribery. No one is above the law. pic.twitter.com/TjBRINfNnY
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) November 16, 2019
Is Brett Kavanaugh usually this pink? Notice the off-angle stripes across his face which were added through some sort of filter:
FACT: Judge Kavanaugh will threaten Roe v. Wade, health care, reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, environmental protections, and so many more of our priorities. #StopKavanaugh pic.twitter.com/SZXNTwsgm2
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) October 2, 2018
They really went all out with this next one. President Trump as a pink zebra:
The gross #CultureOfCorruption runs deep among Republicans in Washington. Robert Mueller's investigation is critical and should be completed without GOP meddling. Add your name if you agree! 👇https://t.co/4XsCHFsiuG pic.twitter.com/otr3YXHmIU
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) August 22, 2018
Here’s one of Sen. Corker:
Republicans were well-aware of the devastating consequences of the #GOPTaxScam. But it didn't stop them because donors issued their ultimatum: force it through or never "call again" assuring "financial contributions would stop."
And then, there's the Corker Kickback. pic.twitter.com/en3itPQluG
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) April 11, 2018
Rep. Mark Sanford with added contrast and a filter for tint:
Republican Rep. Mark Sanford confirms what we've been underscoring: his Republican colleagues have been *deliberately lying* to American voters about the #GOPTaxScam; it punishes the middle class and benefits the top 1% and corporations shipping jobs overseas. pic.twitter.com/s8eAQv3q71
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) December 5, 2017
Pretty sure this image of Paul Ryan has been altered. Maybe the Post can check.
We should be working to provide Americans with a better future, #ABetterDeal instead of forcing an unpopular, deficit-exploding #GOPTaxScam that raises taxes and obliterates Medicare and health care. pic.twitter.com/yfMDOsZ0CC
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) November 29, 2017
Sec. Betsy DeVos got similar treatment:
Want to know to benefits from the #GOPTaxScam? Betsy DeVos! Denounce it. ⏩ https://t.co/oQ9nd6kv9d pic.twitter.com/OlZC8ZgkIq
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) November 7, 2017
And if the Washington Post is concerned about manipulated images of political figures, they might want to ask Pelosi about this (she posted this clip twice):
What Republicans did *was not* tax reform. It was a tax scam, a massive con job that is robbing from our future and threatening Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. #GOPTaxScam pic.twitter.com/8oALlGuVYi
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) February 28, 2018
I guess the Post reporter wasn’t aware of all these altered images on Pelosi’s own account when she wrote a story about a GOP Rep. altering a photo of Pelosi. In fact, Pelosi has a much higher profile and nearly twice as many followers as Stefanik on Twitter, so why didn’t the Post notice? I guess you could say there’s a high contrast in how the Post responds to Democrats vs. Republicans. Maybe Jeff Bezos or someone working for him should take an interest in that.
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