OKLAHOMA CITY (ABP) — A Baptist newspaper in Oklahoma has apologized for publishing an illustration digitally edited to make it appear a controversial proclamation declaring America a Christian nation was endorsed by the state’s Baptist governor.
The Baptist Messenger, official news journal for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, covered a July 2 rally at the State Capitol promoting the “Oklahoma Citizens’ Proclamation for Morality.” The driving force behind the document is Sally Kern, a state legislator best known for commenting that homosexuality is a greater threat to America than terrorism. Kern’s proclamation blames a number of social ills on departure from the “rich Christian heritage upon which this nation was built.”
The newspaper published the report in its July 16 issue, alongside artwork carrying the full text of the proclamation appearing on official state letterhead and signed by Gov Brad Henry and Secretary of State Susan Savage.
Problem is, Henry — a deacon and Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church in Shawnee, Okla. — did not endorse the proclamation, which has been at the center of a controversy about separation of church and state. Baptist officials said a graphic artist superimposed the statement over the actual text of a real proclamation signed by Henry and Savage on July 2 without noticing the signatures and official governor’s seal.
Doug Baker, who takes over as editor of the Baptist Messenger on Aug. 1, said it was an artwork procedure and a mistake. He said the paper’s staff apologized and it would not happen again. The Baptist Messenger website carried a message labeling the graphic “misleading” and apologizing “for the oversight and error.” A spokesman for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma said the paper would run a retraction in two upcoming print editions.
A spokesman for the governor said the paper’s editors “apologized profusely.”