Neighbor News
A Deceptive Photo In Smear Campaign Against Nick
'Gang of 3' goes to the Internet to find a 'Mom' who's opposed to the recall of Hamilton, Voigts and Robinson.
The smear campaign against Lake Forest councilman Adam Nick perpetrated on behalf of Mayor Andrew Hamilton, Mayor Pro Tem Scott Voigts and councilman Dwight Robinson can add a bit more deceit to its resume.
A photo used in the fake newspaper, Lake Forest News, includes a young mother and child under the headline, “LF Residents Rally Against Recall” with a Foothill Ranch dateline; the photo caption underneath reads “Moms against the recall formed to warn community about Nick taking over city.”
One problem.
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The photo is not of a Foothill Ranch resident. Or a Lake Forest resident.
Instead, the image is from Thinkstockphotos.com, and is a royalty-free photograph by Sze Fei Wong. The photo was originally used on an Indonesian health website, Detik Health, on April 30, 2012.
Find out what's happening in Lake Forestfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
- Nick is Anti-Establishment, Thus A Target of Council Rivals
- Councilmen Called 'Local Symbols of Hate'
- Voigts Talks 14 Seconds, Lies Twice
- Analysis: Mayor Perpetuates Lie Against Nick
- Lake Forest Politics Just Got Sleazier
However, in its original form as taken by the photographer, the photo features the mother and child facing to the left; in the Lake Forest News photo on Page 3, it is facing right and cropped similarly to the Detik Health site, which is also facing right. You can compare the copycat photo with the sources and its use at the top of the page.
Unlike the councilmen behind the smear campaign against Nick, the Indonesian website gave a photo credit for the image. Media best practices dictate proper crediting of images that are not original.
Additionally, the text of the article does not feature any evidence of any residents—moms or otherwise—who are actually opposed to the recall. The article also incorrectly says the recall is funded by Nick, who is also incorrectly and disrespectfully referred to as "Councilman Nikamanish" (which is spelled incorrectly); Nick's surname was Nickmanesh (meaning "good manners" in Persian) before legally shortening it to Nick 25 years ago.
About the author: Martin Henderson won several Los Angeles and Orange County press club awards while an editor at Patch in 2012-13.
