Obama on the New Yorker cover

The Blogosphere & MSM react to the Obamas as depicted on the cover of The New Yorker... The campaigns are both outraged.

The following numbers are about to change: The Baltimore Sun reports Barack Obama was mentioned in about 0.75 percent of blog posts last month , compared with 0.39 percent for McCain. Even though each candidate has less than 1 percent of blog traffic, their numbers were still significant since it's rare for any celebrity ( Miley Cyrus, Tiger Woods, Amy Winehouse, George Bush, anyone) to capture even more than a few-hundredths of a percent of the blogosphere with its infinite range of topics.

Politico's Mike Allen reports that Obama took a question (from NBC's Athena Jones) on the cover of the New Yorker:

“The upcoming issue of the New Yorker, the July 21st issue, has a picture of you, depicting you and your wife on the cover. Have you seen it? If not, I can show it to you on my computer. It shows your wife Michelle with an Afro and an AK 47 and the two of you doing the fist bump with you in a sort of turban-type thing on top. I wondered if you’ve seen it or if you want to see it or if you have a response to it?”

Obama (shrugs incredulously): “I have no response to that.”

The magazine explains at the start of its news release previewing the issue: “On the cover of the July 21, 2008, issue of the The New Yorker, in ‘The Politics of Fear,’ artist Barry Blitt satirizes the use of scare tactics and misinformation in the Presidential election to derail Barack Obama’s campaign.”

HuffPo: Yikes! Controversial New Yorker Cover Shows Muslim, Flag-Burning, Osama-Loving, Fist-Bumping Obama

Americablog: "...the New Yorker thinks it's funny to make Mrs. Obama some radical black panther, Barack Obama basically a terrorist (you'll note that he looks just like Osama bin Laden on the wall), and they're even burning the American flag in the Oval Office (that's supposed to be the White House, get it?). They put Osama bin Laden on the wall of the Oval Office. And this is funny? Is the New Yorker so out of touch that they don't realize that much of America, or at least too much of America, harbors these very concerns about Obama and his wife?"

Noel Sheppard: Obama Unhappy With 'Tasteless and Offensive' New Yorker Cover.

AlterNet: Unfortunately the impact of this image will extend far beyond the reading audience of the New Yorker; cable news and the right-wing media noise machine will amplify the derogatory image to millions more. And the New Yorker of course will reap enormous publicity, clearly translating to increased sales and notoriety for the brand, and for corporate owner Conde Nast -- one of the largest and most powerful media companies in America.

Finally, Michelle Malkin urges Barack to stop whining: Grow a pair, Obama

Tags: Obama New Yorker, Obama New Yorker