A breast cancer photo published in Times has received numerous negative comments from readers after a nipple-slip.
On Wednesday, the New York Times published a report with a photo of an Israeli woman's half-naked upper-body on the front page. The photo is meant for the article titled, "The Cancer Divide," which discusses the inequality on the treatment women receive based on their wealth and poverty, culture and values.
It is normal to see an upper body of the woman with part of the breast exposed but a nipple on a front page is very unusual for a newspaper.
A lot of readers felt the same thing – annoyance and frustration -- after seeing the controversial photograph, which showed some of the woman's areola, an incision scar, and a tattoo of Star of David, minus her face.
The image was captured by a contract photographer for The Times in Tel Aviv, named Rina Castelnuovo.
Aside from the nipple slip, one intriguing part of the photo is the Star of David because, according to many, it is associated with the Holocaust.
Jeanine Parisier Plottel, a professor emeritus at the City University of New York, told the "New York Times, "This photograph, featuring a tattoo of a Star of David on the left breast of an unidentified woman who found a lump on her breast echoes the branding of Jewish persons and others in Nazi death camps. While a young woman born a half a century after the atrocities in question may not be aware of the suggested implications, The New York Times should, and should refrain from highlighting such a photograph."
Michelle MacNally, assistant managing editor in charge of photography for the New York Times, defended the photo and explained her reason for allowing it. "It's directly on point to the story. It conveys a lot of information. It brings the reality to light. It's also very beautiful – the lighting, the composition, the tone."
In the end, "This is an extremely powerful image. It's newsworthy and it tells a truth," she said.
