CNN is under fire once again after botching a tribute to feminist icon Gloria Steinem, airing a graphic that erased two decades of her life and activism. The mistake comes just days after the network was forced to apologize for using a photo of a Dolly Parton impersonator in coverage of the singer’s death.
According to The Gateway Pundit, Steinem—a feminist organizer and Honorary Chair of the Democratic Socialists of America—died on Wednesday at age 92. During Thursday’s edition of “CNN News Central,” a graphic honoring Steinem incorrectly listed her lifespan as “1934-2006,” implying she died 20 years earlier than she actually did.
The error was flagged on social media by users, including journalist Drew Kerr, who posted a screenshot of the graphic with the caption: “@cnn is asleep at the wheel this morning about when Gloria Steinem passed away.”
The on-air blunder omitted Steinem’s decades of work from the mid-1980s through the 2000s, a period that included her role as one of eight Honorary Chairs of the Democratic Socialists of America. According to The Gateway Pundit, Steinem’s involvement with the DSA and its predecessor, the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee, dates back to the 1980s and ’90s.
Critics were quick to note the irony that a network paying tribute to Steinem would inadvertently erase a significant chunk of her political activism—particularly her work with left-wing organizations that have drawn increasing scrutiny in recent years.
Steinem, a prominent figure in the women’s liberation movement of the 1960s and ’70s, was known for her sharp critiques of traditional family structures and her outspoken advocacy for abortion rights. Her death at 92 marks the end of an era for American feminism, but CNN’s tribute stumbled out of the gate.
This is not the first time CNN has embarrassed itself in recent days. The network had to issue an apology to the family of Dolly Parton after airing a photograph of a Las Vegas impersonator instead of the country music legend during its coverage of her death on Tuesday night.
During an episode of Laura Coates Live, CNN included a Getty Images photo of 58-year-old Kelly Vohnn, a well-known Dolly Parton impersonator, in a montage intended to honor the singer. Vohnn told the New York Post that friends began texting her immediately after the segment aired.
“I started getting all these texts in from friends saying that I was on CNN, and I couldn’t believe it,” Vohnn said. “I was already heartbroken at losing Dolly because of how much she has given to me as a woman and an artist. But then to see these images of me on screen was just weird.”
CNN later apologized on air, saying, “We regret the error and apologize to the Parton family.”
The back-to-back mistakes have fueled criticism of CNN’s editorial standards, with conservative commentators and media watchdogs seizing on the errors as evidence of sloppy journalism. The Gateway Pundit, which first reported the Steinem graphic error, has been a frequent critic of the network’s coverage.
The Steinem tribute error is particularly glaring given her long and public career. Steinem was a co-founder of Ms. magazine, a key figure in the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment, and a vocal supporter of Democratic candidates for decades. Her association with the Democratic Socialists of America has been a point of contention among her critics, who have pointed to her role as Honorary Chair as evidence of her radical politics.
The Gateway Pundit noted that Steinem “campaigned for Democrats, demeaned men and the traditional family, and celebrated the killing of unborn children,” framing her legacy in sharply critical terms.
CNN has not yet publicly commented on the Steinem graphic error as of this writing. The network did not respond to requests for comment from The Gateway Pundit.
For a network that has positioned itself as a leader in journalism, the recent string of errors—first the Parton photo mix-up, and now the Steinem timeline mistake—raises questions about its fact-checking procedures and attention to detail, especially when it comes to honoring public figures in their final moments.
As media consumers increasingly scrutinize even minor mistakes, CNN’s latest blunder is likely to add to its growing list of public relations headaches. Whether the network will issue a formal correction or apology for the Steinem graphic remains to be seen.
Source: www.thegatewaypundit.com — https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/09/cnn-botches-another-tribute-erases-two-decades-steinems/