Investigation Shows AP Photo was Accurate

Several right-wing bloggers have egg on their sites this morning after denouncing a photograph printed by the AP as being the result of “fauxtography” and crying foul. An investigation by the Independent Center for Truth in Photography has shown that the image, which late last week in several news stories, turned out to be completely genuine and not at all misrepresented by the caption.

The storm began on Wednesday when right-wing blogger and frequent AP critic Charles Johnson said that the photo was “another example of AP fauxtography at their finest.” After the ITCP released their findings this morning, Johnson posted a rare apology on his popular right-wing site, which has been described as a cesspool of hatred by progressive critics.

“I admit that I didn’t research the photo closely enough,” Johnson said. “But after all of the collusion between the PA and the AP over the past few years, I figured that my tip on this one was accurate. It just goes to show that we need to be less vigilant, and that things like Green Helmet man, the al-Durrah shooting, and Yasser Arafat’s phony blood donations are the exception and not the rule.”

Johnson ended his retraction by saying “I conclude by promising less oversight to this noble organization in the future.”

Several other right-wing web logs were quick to attack the ICTP center as a tool of George Soros. While Soros does underwrite the center, blogger Ed Driscoll noted that “it doesn’t change the fact that the photo was what the AP said it was. I guess I’ll never doubt an AP story again.”

The ITCP confirmed that the photo, taken by an AP stringer, was not staged or manipulated in any way. The photograph showed a building in Rafah, and had a caption that said “A Building in Rafah.”

Observers noted that it is the first time in six years that a photograph from this area was genuine, and may mark a new era in accurate reporting from the troubled region.