This old AIB video may explain why newspapers run photos like the one of Kate Middleton
'The Times of India' sparks outrage again after the Deepika Padukone controversy, taking us back to this 'explanation'.
The visiting British royalty was in the news – but not in the way you'd imagine. To milk what it thought was a newsy moment or two, The Times of India and several others put out a picture of Kate Middleton having a “Marilyn Monroe moment”.
Not unexpectedly, India's leading English language newspaper had to take some flak for what was considered an inappropriate insistence on skin-show. And that brought to mind this sketch by comedy troupe AIB, pulled up from the archives, where it depicted an imaginary editorial meeting of a newspaper called Times of Boobs function.
The trigger back then in 2014 was a photograph that The Times of India had published of picture of Deepika Padukone, calling attention to her cleavage – leading to an exchange of words with the actor. Many Twitter users referenced the AIB sketch in light of the photographs of Kate Middleton.
This is the lead story in @timesofindia. Unbelievable. pic.twitter.com/7VdQbERIlZ
— Veena Venugopal (@veenavenugopal) April 12, 2016
AIB has this nice documentary about Times of Boobs. https://t.co/50oM9lVqs8
— Sri Sri Sri Vidyut (@Vidyut) April 12, 2016
INTERVIEWER: Tell me your work experience in journalism
— amrtsh (@floydimus) April 12, 2016
GUY: I googled "Kate Middleton hot"
INTERVIEWER: Hired! Welcome to Times of India!
The sexist & shabby reporting by TOI needs just one tweet from Kate Middleton - I am a woman. I have legs. You have a problem with that?
— Naomi Datta (@nowme_datta) April 12, 2016
This video from AIB makes more sense now than being a comedy video https://t.co/dxOUyi9aSS https://t.co/c2yP3NvNhi
— rakendu (@rakendur) April 12, 2016
The group's defence was that the image was provided by Getty Images, and that they weren't the only ones. It was mostly the foreign press that did the rest of the sexist reporting, with the Daily Mail even pointing out Middleton's "un-pedicured toes".
It's a Getty Images picture. Not TOI. Common sense. Better than British Press discussing Kate's un-pedicured feet. https://t.co/pBYXAbJMxs
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) April 12, 2016
There were media houses that were kinder to Middleton, by pointing at what a 'lady' she is.
Kate Middleton had a Marilyn Monroe-style wardrobe malfunction and handled it like a lady https://t.co/yUmqVXW2PI pic.twitter.com/aMN3F9cJQb
— New York Post (@nypost) April 11, 2016