Oh hell no. If you happen to peruse the pages of this week's Philadelphia Public Record, then you'll see some racist copyeditor's idea of a joke. Please note that "Chinky Winky" and "Dinky Doo" are not real names.
Philadelphia Newspaper Calls Asians "Chinky Winky" and "Dinky Doo"
In the August 21 print edition of the free weekly tabloid, Philadelphia City Councilman Mark Squilla is pictured at a Chinatown fundraising event with several Asian American supporters. The photo's caption includes, among several other made up names, "Me Too," "Chinky Winky" and "Dinky Doo." I see what you did there. Asshole.
The best part about this bullshit is that the publisher is defending the caption as a "proofreading error":
"It was a proofreading error," Tayoun told Philadelphia magazine on Friday afternoon. According to Tayoun, the editor who used those names did so because he didn’t have the actual names. When we pointed out to Tayoun that there were actually more names than there were people, he reiterated, "It was a proofreading error." And when we asked why the editor didn’t use a generic placeholder instead of an ethnic slur, he insisted that there’s no prejudice or bigotry involved here.
"It was a proofreading error." Yes, you just keep repeating that. I guess he means it's like a spelling or grammar error, but the editor forgot catch all the racist shit before it went to print. Don't you hate it when that happens?
Feel free to contact Jimmy Tayoun, publisher of the Philadelphia Public Record, with your thoughts:
PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC RECORD1323 S. BROAD ST.
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19147
Tel: 215-755-2000 Fax: 215-689-4099
Email: editor@phillyrecord.com
Personal: jimtayoun@gmail.com
(Thanks, Helen.)