WaPo Express Features Upcoming Women’s March… For Men?

The Washington Post Express, a free daily publication in DC, may be a bit confused about gender. Or rather, the binary symbols that commonly represent male and female.

Oopsie.

For anyone who might be missing the error, please consider the following informative table:

Binary gender symbols, via nonbinary.org

The cover features the likely-historic rally in Washington to be held on January 21. However, the Women’s March on Washington is being held specifically in support of women’s rights… and that’s specifically a male symbol.

Questions have been raised about the male/female ratio of their editorial board and artistic team.

Listen, everybody makes mistakes. But perhaps this is a sign that @WaPoExpress needs to hire more women in the art dept. ♀ pic.twitter.com/GDHYN5xuy7

— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) January 5, 2017

@WaPoExpress I can completely imagine a female employee trying to correct this while a male employee talks over her to praise it.

— Kirsten (@flungoutofspace) January 5, 2017

And wondering what this indicates about dudes being the default.

You prolly think this march is about you. pic.twitter.com/BHtqSEd1MT

— chelsea g. summers (@chelseagsummers) January 5, 2017

Perfect example of male-centrism… @WaPoExpress pic.twitter.com/jJlYBUaJUK

— Erin Cauchi (@EDCauchi) January 5, 2017

“We made a mistake on our cover this morning and we’re very embarrassed,” they acknowledged later via Twitter. “We erroneously used a male symbol instead of a female symbol.”

They then tweeted a new cover, writing: “This is how the cover should have looked. We apologize for the mistake.”

This is how the cover should have looked. We apologize for the mistake. pic.twitter.com/MKKOkHPV8T

— Express (@WaPoExpress) January 5, 2017

On Twitter, the original Tweet with the male-symbol cover has been deleted. (Which is probably fine, since it also had a typo itself.) However, printed copies can’t be so easily redacted:

And yes, that really was the cover. @WaPoExpress pic.twitter.com/bTzpxq6hiW

— Genevieve Burgess (@rustyheadedgirl) January 5, 2017

Even in contrition, the publication remained PLAGUED BY TYPOS:

right now someone at wapoexpress is using their "screaming pillow" in their cubicle pic.twitter.com/MpgsbN2Mzd

— Gregory Cat-Botherer (@cat_beltane) January 5, 2017

Don’t get me wrong, I remain impressed by the good folks who can crank out articles, graphics, covers, and more on the daily, under great pressure. But I have to wonder how many sets of eyes that had to make it past without anyone noticing that anything was wrong.

I also salute the crew who got their correction out quickly and with apology. Plenty of readers thanked them for the quick fix on such an epic fail, offered to “help,” or at least indicated amusement:

@WaPoExpress Thank you for apology. You really should reprint this tomorrow, tho. Erroneous version all over town this morning @postbaron

— dckath (@dckath) January 5, 2017

Here, @WaPoExpress – fixed that for you. pic.twitter.com/i9liRDM5S0

— neontaster (@neontaster) January 5, 2017

[runs up, out of breath]
You guys!
<huff huff>
Guys, you-
<gasping for breath>
With the sym-
<hard breathing>
You used the wrong-
<dies> pic.twitter.com/2ipT6jNxlE

— Robert McNees (@mcnees) January 5, 2017

It was so funny I'm not even mad. @WaPoExpress

— Laura Shortridge (@DiscordianKitty) January 5, 2017

Regardless of the kerfuffle over the cover, the story about the march itself is well worth a read.