Culture

Just How Bad Is Drudge's 'Django' Headline?

The Drudge Report's homepage went full troll today, displaying a photo of Quentin Tarantino alongside a headline that repeated the n-word seven times.

By Esther Zuckerman
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The Drudge Report's homepage went full troll today, displaying a photo of Quentin Tarantino alongside a headline that repeated the n-word seven times. The headline linked to Todd McCarthy's The Hollywood Reporter review of Tarantino's new film Django Unchained, a movie about slavery in the South, with Tarantino's signature stylized manner.

Perhaps the most perplexing part of Drudge's alarming splash was that he wrapped the entire string of repeated words in quotation marks — that repetition never actually appears in the Django review. In fact, the "n-word" is only mentioned once and only in that context, whereas Drudge actually spells out most of the world, only substituting a star for one letter. McCarthy writes:

Quite naturally, given the historical setting, the N-word gets a heavy workout, by whites and blacks alike. But much more forceful is the cruelty dispensed by the Southern whites, both as punishment and whim; attack dogs are unleashed on one man, Mandingo fighters (in a homage to the unforgettable 1975 Mandingo) battle to the death in a beautifully appointed drawing room for the wealthy’s amusement, a woman is locked naked in a metal “hot box,” genital mutilation is arranged for a man and much more.

Politico's Dylan Byers pointed out the discrepancies between Drudge's headline and the story it takes readers to:

Drudge has the N-word pasted across the top of the page. It links to a film review in the Hollywood Reporter mentioning "N-word" in 9th graf

— Dylan Byers (@DylanByers) December 12, 2012

As was to be expected, Drudge got an instant reaction. Yes, there is a discussion to be had about Tarantino's use of the word (and it's been and will probably continue to be had), but the Drudge Report's headline does little beyond provoke:

Some came to the conclusion that it was a vicarious move on Drudge's part:

But since we all know Drudge's tendencies, the sensational headline struck others as nothing new:

Drudge's actions were not without defenders, though: the conservatives over at Twitchy jumped to the site's defense.

This article is from the archive of our partner The Wire.