Al Franken, Bad Photoshopping, And Cincinnati

If you ever want to really know what's going on in Cincinnati, be sure to read the Cincinnati Beacon's website. Today, they catch Cincinnati Enquirer loudmouth Peter Bronson failing Source Checking 101.

Peter Bronson, the self-published vanity author and columnist for The Cincinnati Enquirer, has his very own blog entitled “Bronson is always right.” On July 1st, however, his political hackery reached a new low when he used a doctored photo—apparently without knowing the image had been thoroughly debunked—in an attempt to make a hit on Al Franken, the Democratic Senator from Minnesota. The piece includes the picture to your right, with the phrase “Is this who you want making decisions about your health care?” But the photo is a verified fake!

Several years ago, ThinkProgress published this item, showing the origins of this doctored fake:

The news release was accompanied by this photograph, showing Franken dressed up like a baby bunny, wearing adult diapers and clutching a fluffy white teddy bear.

Andy Barr, director of Franken’s Midwest Values PAC, confirmed, “The picture is a fake.” The Ohio Republican Party used a 2004 AP photo of Franken for the doctored image:

Interestingly, the quote includes two links to none other than the Enquirer’s Politics Extra blog—apparently showing how the picture is a fake—but the links are from their old blog and no longer redirect properly. However, you can find the original item in the Internet Archive here, signed by Jon Craig.

Apparently, Peter Bronson doesn’t even follow his own paper’s political coverage.

Which, if you've read Peter Bronson, that makes perfect sense. He's basically Cincy's version of MoDo the Red...without the charm.

[UPDATE 12:27 PM] I see Bronson's EPIC FAIL made him Atrios's Wanker of the Day, and rightfully so.