The Onion Sparks Ire With Image Of Plane, Building

The satirical newspaper The Onion is attracting some public ire for an image that shows an airliner about to crash into Chicago’s Willis Tower, the tallest building in the country.

The image on The Onion’s website shows an airplane emblazoned with the company name Sears flying toward the black skyscraper formerly named Sears Tower. A narrator intones, “Sears extremists fly a plane into Willis Tower.”

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The image generated more than 2,000 responses on The Onion’s Facebook page by Friday evening, many denouncing the use of an image reminiscent of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York.

The Onion marketing director Grant Jones addressed the criticism in the newspaper’s tone, saying: “9-11 must never be the fodder for jokes. Perhaps you didn’t see the news that humor died after 9-11.”
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