Kenyatta Johnson was acquitted. Some newspapers ran photos of Malcolm Kenyatta instead.
At least two Pennsylvania newspapers owned by a hedge fund incorrectly ran photos of State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta in a story about a corruption trial of City Councilman Kenyatta Johnson.
State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta is getting angry calls at his office after at least two Pennsylvania newspapers incorrectly ran his photo with stories about the acquittal of City Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson.
Johnson, 49, and his wife were acquitted in federal court Wednesday after facing bribery charges. The Reading Eagle and Delaware County Daily Times, which are part of the same media conglomerate, ran Associated Press stories about the outcome. Alongside the articles, they both included a picture of Malcolm Kenyatta, 32, who is also a Black elected official from Philadelphia.
The captions on the photos, also from AP, were edited to say in part that “Kenyatta and his wife were acquitted of corruption charges.” Malcolm Kenyatta, who is married to a man, has never faced criminal charges.
An AP spokesperson, Lauren Easton, said the wire service did not send out any photographs with its story on Wednesday.
That means the newspapers likely picked the accompanying photo themselves from AP archives. The Eagle and Times are both owned by the Denver-based MediaNews Group, an amalgamation of news outlets that is in turn owned primarily by the hedge fund Alden Global Capital, which has sought to slash costs at local outlets it has acquired.
MediaNews Group owns seven Pennsylvania newspapers, according to its website, including the Morning Call in Allentown and Daily Local in Chester County. It was unclear if they all ran the same photograph.
Kenyatta, the state representative who built a significant profile while running for U.S. Senate earlier this year, said that his office has been receiving vulgar messages from members of the public, and that he has even heard from angry and confused donors.
“This reporting has been circulated online and in print newspapers across the commonwealth. As a result, my staff has endured verbal abuse and harassment,” Kenyatta said in a statement to The Inquirer. “I’ve spent multiple hours clarifying to constituents and supporters that the story is not in fact about me.”
MediaNews Group does not list a phone number on its website and did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. The Times and Eagle also did not immediately respond to calls or emails.