A controversial T-Shirt that threatens journalists has been removed from Walmart’s website thanks to the Radio Television Digital News Director Association.
According to a story on the association’s site, the shirt which read “Rope. Tree. Journalist. SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED” had been offered for sale on the company’s website by a third party vendor.
RTDNA Executive Director Dan Shelley sent a letter pointing out that the message sent by the shirts could “at the least … inflame the passions of those who either don’t like, or don’t understand, the news media. At worst, they openly encourage violence targeting journalists.”
AdvertisementLess than five hours later, Shelley received an email from an entity called the Walmart Executive Escalations department stating, in part, “We have forwarded this to the appropriate team to remove it. Walmart.com does appreciate feedback like this so that offensive material does not appear on our website.” RTDNA has confirmed that the shirt has indeed been removed from Walmart.com.
The RTDNA says the “Rope. Tree. Journalist. SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED” slogan has been in existence for many years. It gained notoriety during the 2016 election cycle when some people began wearing it at campaign rallies and in public places.
