Reuters Photog Appears to Capture Bush at U.N. Writing Note About 'Bathroom Break'

Editor And Publisher ^ | 09-14-05 | WestVirginiaRebel

[WestVirginiaRebel]

NEW YORK In what seems to be destined to become one of the most yacked about photos of the month, if not year, a Reuters photographer today seems to have captured President George W. Bush scribbling a note to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice suggesting that he needed to take a "bathroom break" during a session at the United Nations.

[Ciexyz]

Disgusting piece of scum Reuters executives. Sheesh! Rot in hell you buttholes!

[Bear_Slayer]

Is this like that secret prompting device he wore during the 2004 debates?

What is the deal with this rumour? Earlier in the week some yahoo on the Today show commented to perky katie that he had to wear listening device in his latest movie, "Not unlike the one Bush wore in the debates."

Everyone laughed. Perky had an "Oh sh!t, we're in trouble now," look.

[Rebelbase]

[Chicos_Bail_Bonds]

This really needs to be knocked out of the park...put on your pajamas kids. This one just doesn't smell right at all.

[chs68]

I think Harry Truman was left-handed, also.

[wallcrawlr]

This thread is awesome...lol.

[tpmintx]

2) Should I feel concerned that a photographer can get a photo of what the President is writing to his Sec of State? Did we doge a bullet, in that it could have been something sensitive?

I agree. I think that this could have been a serious security breach. This will certainly alert the administration to the possibility of this happening in the future. Too bad it wasn't something like "Let's bomb these f*ckers tomorrow."

[DaiHuy]

I guess when you become President your bodily functions just cease. I know Bill Clinton never used a bathroom, because there are no pictures of it.

[GraceCoolidge]

Is he implying that Condi wrote the actual note and Bush is responding to her request for a bathroom break?

That's how I'd read it. Secretary Rice passed the note to President Bush, he's writing his reply at the bottom prior to passing it back to her. Anyone have a sample of Dr. Rice's handwriting?

So the real news is that not only does President Bush have bodily functions, so does Dr. Rice. Impeach them all!

[scfirewall]

I'm assuming he is passing the note along to his secret service detail.....

[mountainfolk]

New rules for the UN. Raise your hand and indicate by one finger or two which bodily function you are in need of relieving. We will then recess for the time allotted for the required function. If both are involved, please indicate such by raising both hands. Now, on to who will chair the new committee on toilet breaks.

[marmar]

Those are leaks that I care nothing about, but apparently the lame stream media is just chomping at the bitt for...

[N. Theknow]

Difference between Clinton and Bush.

Clinton was/is a jack-off and Bush gives a $hit.

[steve-b]

I know Bill Clinton never used a bathroom

He just used the sink.

[antaresequity]

First off the handwriting isn't Bush's...

Look at the first image and compare the 'I'..it appears as if the lower writing is indeed his, but not the crap about the bathroom break...

Further...when the image is enhanced and sharpened...you can begin to see the blocks of cut and paste graphics, and their obviosu demarcations...The lower image has been sharpened in fireworks by three or four degrees...you can see clearly square demarcations around the supposed text..

[fanfan]

Reuters Explains Photo Of Bush Bathroom Note

Don't blame the photographer.

That's the message from Gary Hershorn, a picture editor for Reuters, about the photo yesterday that shows President George W. Bush writing an all-too-human note during a UN meeting.

Bush is shown writing: "I think I may need a bathroom break. Is this possible."

The photo, which quickly became fodder for blogs and e-mails among friends, was taken by Rick Wilking, a contract photographer based in Denver who recently covered the flooding in New Orleans.

Hershorn, Reuters' news editor for pictures for the Americas, says he's responsible for zooming in on the note and deciding to transmit the photo to Reuters clients. He says Wilking didn't know what the note said when he shot the picture.

"I'm so adamant that Rick has nothing to do with this. He was just the guy who pushed the button," Hershorn says.

In response to the attention the photo is getting, Reuters' spokeswoman in London released a two-sentence statement about the picture: "The photographer and editors on this story were looking for other angles in their coverage of this event, something that went beyond the stock pictures of talking heads that these kind of forums usually offer. This picture certainly does that."

So how did the picture happen?

According to Hershorn, Wilking was one of several photographers covering the United Nations Security Council meeting between about 11 and noon yesterday. He was part of a pool stationed on a balcony that faced Bush's back; a group of White House photographers was on a balcony facing the president.

Wilking shot about 200 images and sent two memory cards to the press room at the U.N., where Hershorn was working. Hershorn looked at the images on a computer and initially decided not to send any of them.

But a few hours later, he started to wonder about a note that Bush was seen writing in three of the pictures. Out of curiosity, he zoomed in to see if he could read it.

Once he saw what it said, Hershorn decided the note was interesting and worth publishing. The white parts of the picture were overexposed, so a Reuters processor used Photoshop to burn down the note. This is a standard practice for news photos, Hershorn says, and the picture was not manipulated in any other way.

Around 4:30 p.m., Reuters transmitted two versions of the photo, including one that was tightly cropped around the note and Bush's hand.

The caption says that Bush was writing the note to Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice; Hershorn says Wilking saw Bush write the note and hand the note to Rice.

Hershorn says heads of state seldom attend Security Council meetings, and it's possible that Bush was simply asking his secretary of state what the proper protocol was to be excused.

Online, some accused Reuters, and the media in general, of being insulting or juvenile. A letter writer to Editor & Publisher wrote, "You ought to all be ashamed of yourselves for this stupid trivia and childish focus."

It's unclear how widely the picture was published; Hershorn says The (Toronto) Globe and Mail published it but he wasn't sure of any other outlets. Hershorn says he decided to transmit the picture because it was interesting.

"There was no malicious intent," he says. "That's not what we do."

LINK

[Teacher317]

The first person pronoun "I" is in script all 4 times in the letter, but is in block form in both instances in the note. He uses caps for entire words in the note, but not once in the letter (except for the postal abbreviation for Michigan).

[Teacher317]

he decided to transmit the picture because it was interesting.
"There was no malicious intent," he says. "That's not what we do."

Uh-huh.

[fanfan]

Exactly.

Oh, and how often does Reuters feel a need to explain themselves?

[mountainfolk]

It does seem that the MSM has had a Beavis and Butthead moment. They really are hard up for genuine news because they avoid anything that might inform the public and concentrate on slamming Pres Bush. They are running out of material. We can expect more of this 'crap'.