Kenyan policemen walk from the scene where explosions and gunshots were heard at the Dusit hotel compound in Nairobi, Kenya, January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
Several Kenyans took to Twitter to criticize the New York Times for publishing a graphic photo taken in the aftermath of a terrorist attack on Tuesday in Nairobi, with some of the social media network users calling it insensitive and sensationalized.
The New York Times published a photo of two bullet-ridden bodies slouched over tables at a restaurant in the hotel and office complex targeted by an al-Qaeda affiliate group in the East African nation. The attack has so far claimed about 15 lives.
"We want to be respectful to the victims and to others affected by the attack,' the New York Times said in a post on Twitter. "But we also believe it is important to give our readers a clear picture of the horror of an attack like this.”
Angry Twitter users told the New York Times what they thought of the publication’s explanation . "It is insensitive & does not add value to the story, ” Dennis Itumbi, a communications official with the Kenyan government tweeted.
Africans have often used social media networks to complain about the negative portrayal of the continent that they say international media has tended to perpetuate instead of reporting on the region’s booming economies and emerging middle class.
