That was taken directly from the times website, the distortion is probably caused by a wide angle lens
Look more closely at the flag. There’s a bit of a white border on the top. There is also a splotch of red extending from the end of the flag on the top right. The last red stripe on the bottom is cut off. A wide angle lens wouldn’t explain the difference in perspective between the people and the chairs. It also doesn’t account for the different angles of the shadows.