Jane Hamsher
Jane Hamsher is film producer, author, and liberal blogger. She produced Natural Born Killers and is a founder of the popular progressive blog Firedoglake. She is also a contributor to the HuffingtonPost. Recently she has become an activist in support of Ned Lamont who is a Democrat running for a U.S. Senate seat in Connecticut. Lamont is trying to defeat incumbent senator Joe Lieberman whose unwavering support of the Iraq war and other Bush policies have drawn the ire of the liberal blogs. As a result, many liberal blogs are working hard to defeat Lieberman in the Democratic primary.
Hamsher is one of several liberal bloggers who have traveled with Lamont's campaign. She is not on the campaign staff but has actively promoted Lamont's candidacy and helped raise money for him through her blog. [1]
Photoshop Controversy
Hamsher came under fire from the Joe Lieberman campaign for posting a photoshopped picture of a blackfaced Joe Lieberman embracing Bill Clinton on the HuffingtonPost blog. The Lieberman campaign believed that the photo was racist and offensive. In a statement, Joe Lieberman called the photo "one of the most disgusting and hurtful images that has been used in American history, it's deeply offensive to people of all colors, and it has absolutely no place in the political arena today." Lieberman also demanded that Lamont prohibit Hamsher from traveling with his campaign and to refuse any money that Hamsher may have raised for him. [2]
The Lamont campaign asked Hamsher to take down the photo to which she complied. Reporters immediately started questioning Lamont about the photo to which he responded "I don't know anything about the blogs. I'm not responsible for those. I have no comment on them." A spokesman for Lamont called the photo "offensive and inappropriate." [3]
Hamsher later issued an apology on her blog Firedoglake to anyone she may have offended. [4]
Lamont was also questioned about the photo in an interview with George Stephanopolous on ABC's This Week.