Fundraising image of Kaepernick altered?
Former 49ers’ image is placed next to Trump in fundraising committee email
It has been more than 2½ years since Colin Kaepernick suited up for an NFL game, yet it appears there are people still trying play defense against him.
On Wednesday, the National Republican Congressional Committee distributed a fundraising email.
On Thursday, Yahoo reported that an image of Kaepernick in the email appeared side by side with President Donald Trump, and that the Kaepernick image seemed to have been altered to make Kaepernick’s skin tone appear darker. The email asked respondents who they stand with — the president or Kaepernick.
Trump has repeatedly denounced Kaepernick for his social justice movement, which included NFL players kneeling during the national anthem before games.
One Democratic operative who had seen the email told Yahoo, “House Republicans are running on racism, plain and simple. It’s disgusting, it’s offensive and it should be fireable, but there’s no accountability in the Republican Party.”
NRCC communications director Chris Pack told the Bay Area News Group: “The image was not altered in any way by the NRCC. The image was published as-is from a graphic design vendor.”
The NRCC said that the image was created by political ad agency Targeted Victory. But the original photo was taken by a Miami Herald photographer, and the NRCC did not get the Herald’s permission to use the image, according to Herald managing editor Rick Hirsch.
“The Miami Herald did not provide this photo to the NRCC,” Hirsch said in an email. “Under no circumstance would we give permission for the image to be altered in this way.”
Images may become darker when edited for print but according to graphic and photo designer Susana Sanchez, there is no reason a digital image would be altered in such a way.
“This was manually manipulated so that he would look darker. Why, I don’t know,” said Sanchez, special projects designer for Advance Local. “But the whole image was toned darker.” Images and video have previously been altered for political purposes. In May a video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was apparently altered to make her sound addled or confused.
According to Yahoo, such alterations occurred against Barack Obama in the 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns.
Wednesday’s email promised donors a mug with a 1770s- era flag in exchange for a $25 contribution. Earlier this month, Kaepernick prevailed upon Nike to withhold the rollout of a new shoe — the Betsy Ross Flag Air Max 1 USA. On the heel of the shoe was an emblem of a Betsy Ross-era flag.
Kaepernick was concerned that the emblem is used by extremist groups, including white nationalists. Nike said it stopped the rollout and recalled shoes that had been delivered to retailers.
Nike stock trended upward after the action. Neither Kaepernick nor his associates have responded to requests for comment on this story.