NPR Deletes Tweet Claiming Boston Voters Disappointed Over Election of Asian Mayor

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NPR on Tuesday deleted a tweet claiming “disappointment” among voters in Boston after the city elected its first Asian mayor, saying it doesn’t “always get things right the first time.”

“Michelle Wu, an Asian American, is the first woman and first person color elected to lead the city,” NPR noted in an initial missive. “While many are hailing it as a turning point, others see it as more of a disappointment that the three Black candidates couldn’t even come close.”

The tweet vanished by Tuesday afternoon. “Many were hopeful Boston would finally elect its first Black mayor, as most of the nation’s 30 largest cities have already done,” NPR wrote in a revised version. “Black activists and political strategists reflect on what they can learn from the 2021 campaign season.”

The company  added in a follow-up: “We realize we don’t always get things right the first time, and our previous tweet/headline misrepresented the story. We deleted the previous tweet, which was causing harm, and have updated the story.”

Eagle-eyed critics noticed the change and ridiculed NPR for the infelicitous claim in its earlier tweet.

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