A Feb. 9 article about President Bush's response to cartoons mocking Islam incorrectly said that some editors at the New York Observer resigned to protest a decision by the newspaper's management not to publish the cartoons. Those events occurred at the New York Press.
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Bush Shifts on Muslim Protests
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Since then, Bush, Vice President Cheney and White House spokesman Scott McClellan have not specifically criticized the cartoons. "I call upon the governments around the world to stop the violence, to be respectful, to protect property, protect the lives of innocent diplomats who are serving their countries overseas," Bush said yesterday.
The State Department official said the reason for the disjointed response is that "there is not entire uniformity in the U.S. government about how we feel about these things."
The new, carefully calibrated statements by Bush and others are aimed at offering a cautionary note about the responsibilities of the news media without directly condemning the cartoons, and at trying to move the debate beyond the drawings.
In her comments to reporters, Rice accused Iran and Syria of using the cartoon controversy to stir violence and protests. In Iran, which is locked in a bitter dispute with the United States, Europe and others over its nuclear ambitions, the country's largest newspaper announced Tuesday an international competition for Holocaust cartoons.
Last weekend, protesters set fire to Danish embassies in Beirut and the Syrian capital of Damascus.
The cartoons were published in several European countries, including Denmark, Austria, France, Germany and Italy.
Many U.S. newspapers, including The Washington Post, have decided not to print them. In New York yesterday, four editors at the alternative Observer newspaper quit after managers refused to publish the cartoons.
Staff writer Glenn Kessler contributed to this report.
