© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Marvel Comics writer-editor Stan Lee passed away on Monday, however, a newspaper in New Zealand mistakenly called him Spike Lee, the American film director. Yes, The Gisborne Herald in their front page on Tuesday correctly used the photo of the 95-year-old Marvel legend but wrote, “Characters first, superheroes next: Spike Lee dies at 95.” The gaffe quickly garnered attention from people all over the world and the front page of the Kiwi paper went viral, sadly, not for the right reasons.
ALSO READ | Mumbai Police’s poignant tribute to Stan Lee is winning hearts online
Many took to social media to share the snapshot of the front page and while thought it was a funny mistake, others were miffed.
https://twitter.com/DeepFriedMan/status/1062657585155923968
https://twitter.com/MacWenz/status/1062684366042775553
https://twitter.com/Philip0Turner/status/1062407009004335105
https://twitter.com/Wham2214/status/1062399120999100416
As the photo started doing rounds across social media platforms, Spike Lee, best known for his fierce commentary on US race relations in films like BlacKKKlLansman, Do The Right Thing, and Malcolm X, decided to reply to the goof-up in his known characteristic style. Taking to Instagram, the film director wrote, “God Bless Stan Lee. Me? Not Yet. And Dat’s Da ‘I’m Still A Live, And Strivin’ Truth, Ruth.”
While the Gisborne Herald acknowledged the mistake on its website on Wednesday, the editors didn’t offer an apology. Instead, they reported on how the paper grabbed “international spotlight” for the headline gaffe. However, according to a report by Stuff, Gisborne Herald editor Jeremy Muir said the headline gaffe was “really embarrassing.” The report quoted him saying, “People are having a bit of fun with it. That’s fine. It’s just really embarrassing. It’s a human mistake.”
