The New York Times issued a correction on their article connecting Nikki Haley to the purchase of expensive curtains for the residence of the U.S. ambassador to the U.N.
The original version of the article by Gardiner Harris blamed Haley for the State Department’s decision to purchase $52,701 curtains for her residence.
“Nikki Haley’s View Of New York Is Priceless,” the headline read. “Her Curtains? $52,701.”
The article explained in the sixth paragraph, however, that the decision to buy the curtains was made during the Obama administration and that Haley had no say in the matter.
“The current ambassador, Nikki R. Haley, is the first to live in the new residence, which has spectacular views. But a spokesman for Ms. Haley emphasized that plans to buy the mechanized curtains were made in 2016, during the Obama administration,” Harris wrote. “Ms. Haley had no say in the purchase, he said.”
After receiving criticism for the misleading story, NYT put an editor’s note at the top of the piece explaining that they were incorrect to tie Haley to the curtain purchase.
“An earlier version of this article and headline created an unfair impression about who was responsible for the purchase in question. While Nikki R. Haley is the current ambassador to the United Nations, the decision on leasing the ambassador’s residence and purchasing the curtains was made during the Obama administration, according to current and former officials. The article should not have focused on Ms. Haley, nor should a picture of her have been used. The article and headline have now been edited to reflect those concerns, and the picture has been removed.”
The article was responsible for duping at least one elected official. Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu demanded that the House Foreign Affairs Committee hold a hearing about State Department spending on Haley.
The NYT article also knocked Haley for spending $58,000 per month on rent, despite the fact that the rent is much lower than in previous administrations.