TAKE DOWN

Guardian Removes Decades-Old Bin Laden Text After It Goes Viral

The letter had been one of the most-read articles on the Guardian’s website.

exclusive

The Guardian took down on Wednesday a 2002 letter written by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, saying the version of the letter on its website that had circulated on social media in recent days needed more context.

“The transcript published on our website 20 years ago has been widely shared on social media without its original context,” a Guardian spokesperson told The Daily Beast in a Wednesday email. “Therefore we have decided to take it down and direct readers to the news article that originally contextualized it instead.”

The link housing the full letter now directs readers to a November 2002 story about the letter initially published in The Observer, the paper’s sister publication. The letter had reached the top of the Guardian’s website in recent days and had circulated on social media thanks to bin Laden’s comments on Palestine.

Its most prominent platforming was on TikTok, where some creators expressed their surprise at bin Laden’s support for Palestine. The virality was comparatively mild, however, with video view counts not reaching the millions often associated with viral videos.

In contrast, videos shared following the paper’s takedown of the letter have gotten much closer to the million-view mark.

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Corbin BoliesMedia Reporter

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