Advertisement
IRL

New York Times tweets, quickly deletes poll over Christine Blasey Ford’s credibility

The Times messed up, big time.

Photo of Samantha Grasso

Samantha Grasso

New York Times tweeted a poll about Christine Blasey Ford's believability

After Christine Blasey Ford recalled how Brett Kavanaugh, as a teenager, held her down on a bed at a get together, attempted to take her clothes off, and covered her mouth as she screamed, Ford’s voice shaking as she relived her trauma before the Senate Judiciary Committee and tens of thousands of people watching at home, the New York Times opinion section wanted to know one thing: Did Twitter find Ford’s testimony credible?

Featured Video

Yes, this was a real question that the Twitter account for the paper’s oft-criticized opinion section posed to the internet, as if the court of public opinion had not already been in session since before Ford’s identity was revealed less than two weeks ago.

The poll, which has since been deleted, asked voters to voice whether they felt Ford’s testimony was credible, giving options for “yes,” “no,” and “unsure.”

After deleting the tweet, the opinion account shared an image of the offensive poll, with the caption, “We’re sorry for this tweet. In retrospect, a Twitter poll is insensitive in light of the gravity of this hearing. We’ve deleted it.”

Advertisement

While the tweet was live for less than four hours, it only garnered a few thousand votes, with a majority of critics tweeting directly at the Times social media account to express their opinion.

Advertisement

https://twitter.com/mehreenkasana/status/1045346895533498368

Advertisement

https://twitter.com/Saudha_K/status/1045347684406767616

Advertisement

And while the Times’ opinion account did apologize, few people were satisfied by the apology, because, well, the poll was shared in the first place.

Advertisement

Advertisement

https://twitter.com/aj_joven/status/1045353005820698624

https://twitter.com/thecityofjules/status/1045349329773506561

Advertisement

Sorry, New York Times. Perhaps the internet is done with armchair analysis about a woman’s believability when it comes to recounting her experience with sexual assault.

Advertisement
 
The Daily Dot