Awqaf Ministry photo kindles the best of Jordanian humor
13-05-2013 08:45 PM
Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - A photoshopped photo of Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs published by the Jordan News Agency Petra on Sunday stirred quite a controversy over the professionalism of the state's official news agency, and became a subject of Jordanian humor on social networking sites.
The original photo was taken during a meeting at the Ministry of Awqaf of a training session - ironically - for ministry staff to use the ministry website's new e-registration for Hajj pilgrimage applications.
Awqaf Minister Mohammad Qudah reportedly attended Saturday's workshop briefly, and the photographer didn't manage to take a photo of him in the session.
"An employee working the Ministry's Public Relations Department took it upon himself to photoshop a picture of the Minister in the workshop on Saturday" an official source at the Ministry of Awqaf said.
"The Ministry's photographer did not take a photo of the Minister while he briefly attended the workshop, but only took photos of participants following the Minister's departure," the source added.
Minister Qudah reportedly "strongly reprimanded" the employee, and considered the act "irresponsible and unacceptable," the source told Jordan News Agency.
It was quite easy for readers to pick up on the fact that the photo was photoshopped, considering the disproportionate size of the Minister in comparison to others on the table alongside him, and the reflection on the table of a different person that appears to be cropped out of the photo. No reflection of the Minister shows on the glass-top table.
The photo went Jordanianly viral, with Jordanians exchanging photoshopped pictures replacing the Minister with famous personalities, including actor Chuck Norris, Egyptian singer Um Kulthum, Star Wars' Yoda, Football Player Mario Balotelli, Abu Mahjoub, Children shows personalities Big Bird and Barney, and cartoon characters from the Simpsons and Family guy, among others.
"Chuck Norris not training Awqaf ministry employees on using the ministry's website," a caption of a photoshopped picture that circulated on Facebook said.
Petra's gaffe on Sunday recalled Egypt's Al Ahram similar incident, in which a newspaper editor doctored a red carpet photo of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, cropping out US President Barack Obama and moving him back in the photo to present Mubarak as leading the procession of other leaders.