The website and the Twitter account of the New York Post posted offensive headlines and tweets targeting some US politicians on Thursday.
It turns out that the newspaper's website and Twitter account were hacked, as per BleepingComputer.
New York Post's Offensive Posts Target Some US Politicians
According to the New York Post, an employee was responsible behind the offensive materials targeting some US politicians which are posted in the website and the Twitter account of the newspaper, as per CNBC.
The posted materials include racist, violent and sexually explicit remarks about New York progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and President Joe Biden.
The newspaper tweeted that the New York Post has been hacked and they are currently investigating the cause. The offensive posts made earlier on Thursday were already removed.
A tweet about the assassination of Ocasio-Cortez first called the attention of Twitter users. It reads "We must assassinate AOC for America."
While the tweet was quickly deleted, it stayed long enough in the platform and Google was able to cache it.
Among the other offensive posts are remarks that threaten the lives of Joe Biden and Hunter Biden.
There was also another post wherein Texas Governor Greg Abbott was accused of advocating lethal force at the border.
Likewise, there is a faked threat against Rep. Josh Gottheimer and family. The fake threat was by Republican opponent Frank Pallotta.
In addition, two false and defamatory quotes were also posted. These were allegedly from New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin addressing his opponents Governor Kathy Hochul and New York Mayor Eric Adams.
The quotes purported to be from Zeldin included threats of sexual violence. Additionally, the remarks contain racist statements.
"The New York Post has long fostered an ugly, toxic conversation on their front pages and social accounts, but these posts are more disgusting and vile than usual," Hochul's spokesperson Jerrel Harvey said, as per The Independent.
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New York Post Says it Terminated Employees Behind the Offensive Posts
By midmorning, the News Corp.-owned New York tabloid newspaper's website was operating again.
Based on circulation, the New York Post is considered as one of the top newspapers in the country.
According to the Press Gazette, its website is one of the most visited news websites in 2021 and 2022. The Twitter account of the newspaper has 2.8 million followers.
According to the spokesperson of the newspaper, "The New York Post's investigation indicates that the unauthorized conduct was committed by an employee, and the employee has been terminated."
The spokesperson further added that they had immediately removed the "vile and reprehensible content" from the newspaper's website and Twitter account.
The New York Post claimed that the offensive posts were a result of a hack. Currently, an investigation is being conducted.
It can be recalled that the Fast Company, another US publication also became a victim of a hack last month. It has to shut down its website for about a week.
The hackers were able to access the site of the Fast Company. As a result, the site of the publication sent out obscene and racist push notifications to Apple News users.
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