The July 2nd, 2018 issue of Time magazine is a great example of the power of a great magazine cover.
The image of a two year old Honduran girl in tears (taken by Pulitizer Prize-winning photographer John Moore) has been photo-shopped into an ominous image of President Trump looming over her. The headline, Welcome to America, sums things up in three short words, and creates a powerful and emotional reaction. If you google the cover, Time, CNN and the Huffington Post comes up pushing the magazine.
UPDATE: The Washington Post reports that the cover image used to vilify Trump is “Fake News.” The Washington Post reports that, “the father of the girl confirmed to The Washington Post Thursday night that the child and mother were not separated.”
The story goes on to say that, “In Honduras, Denis Javier Varela Hernandez recognized his daughter in the photo and also feared she was separated from her mother, he told The Post. But he learned this week that his wife and daughter were not, in fact, separated. The mother, 32-year-old Sandra Sanchez, was detained with her nearly 2-year-old daughter, Yanela, at a facility in McAllen Tex., Varela said.”
It turns out that the mother of four abandoned her other three children, left without telling her husband, and paid a human smuggler or “coyote” $6000. The Post goes on to say that, Time magazine’s story, recounting the Pulitizer Prize-winning photographer John Moore’s experience at the border, initially stated the girl was carried away screaming by border agents,” but have now admitted that that was incorrect.
The controversy swirling around the cover as “fake news” will only help it sell more copies.
