Museum pulls Trump slogan T-shirt after backlash

A MUSEUM is in hot water and has been forced to backflip after complaints about its latest Trump-related merchandise.

US President Donald Trump dons the red ‘Make America Great Again’ hat during a campaign rally on March 19, 2016. Picture: Supplied

BOWING to pressure from journalists, who complained about it stocking Trump-related merchandise, a museum in Washington said it would no longer sell T-shirts emblazoned with “You Are Very Fake News”.

The Newseum — which celebrates the role and history of the press in America — said it had removed the shirts from its gift shop and online store, and issued a public apology as a show of support for members of the media.

“We made a mistake and we apologise,” the organisation said in a statement, news outlet The Hill reported. “A free press is an essential part of our democracy and journalists are not the enemy of the people.”

Newseum stops selling "Fake News" t-shirts after backlash https://t.co/tcvaZLtngf pic.twitter.com/TlNXeUglbO

— The Hill (@thehill) August 5, 2018

The Newseum’s backflip is a reversal from its previous position, which stated the venue offered the “Fake News” shirts and other items to pay homage to conflicting political viewpoints.

Newseum spokeswoman Sonya Gavankar had originally defended the merchandise to Poynter.org, a media think tank website, claiming the venue encourages an environment of free expression.

“As a nonpartisan organisation, people with differing viewpoints feel comfortable visiting the Newseum,” she said, “and one of our greatest strengths is that we’re champions not only of a free press, but also of free speech.”

But members of the free press weren’t buying it.

This is a very bad idea @Newseum -- you exist to honor, examine and protect the news media, not embrace the bywords by which others seek to undermine it. https://t.co/DBt3kfIPpA

— Michael Barbaro (@mikiebarb) August 3, 2018

It is a disgrace for @Newseum to be selling Fake News t-shirts. https://t.co/SXA0Ktscia

— Pete Souza (@PeteSouza) August 3, 2018

The T-shirt saga followed a heated exchange earlier this week where journalists asked White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to declare that the media was not the “enemy of the people,” a position espoused by President Trump, who also helped to popularise the term “fake news.”

Making America Great Again, one cap at a time. US President Donald Trump portrait sits behind a table full of campaign merchandise. Picture: AFP/Saul Loeb

According to its website, the mission of Newseum, a not-for-profit enterprise, is to “increase public understanding of the importance of a free press and the First Amendment.”

While the Newseum will no longer sell the “fake news” shirts, it told FOX5 DC that it would continue to carry other Trump-related merchandise, including the top-selling “Make America Great Again” hats.

This story originally appeared on Fox News and is republished with permission.