White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt watches her son Nicholas waddle, one of the National Thanksgiving turkeys, in the White House press briefing room ahead of a turkey pardon ceremony with U.S. President Donald Trump on November 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images) (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The White House has been accused of pressuring an online photo library to remove an “disgusting” image of Carolyn Leavitt.
The photo, taken in November, was withdrawn from circulation after press agencies were reportedly “made aware” that the White House objected to it. The photo was taken after photographers took dozens of shots of the White House press secretary during a Thanksgiving-themed press briefing last year.
Levitt brought her young son to the event, which also featured “Waddle” the turkey receiving a traditional presidential pardon. “We’ve got Waddle,” Leavitt told reporters, “Come in, Waddle!”
The turkey wandered around the room and stopped near the lecture hall as reporters asked him a series of light-hearted questions. “Waddle, why are you getting an apology? What did you do wrong?” One asked.
Several photos showed Levitt and his son enjoying the occasion, yet one particular shot reportedly infuriated the White House. The image, taken from a low angle, shows Levitt smiling at his son while holding the turkey on his hip.
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 25: Nicholas “Nico” Robert Riccio, son of White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt, crawls next to Waddle, the National Thanksgiving Turkey Choice, in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on November 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump will pardon Waddle and the National Turkey Goblet, who were both raised in North Carolina and will spend the rest of their lives under the supervision of the Prestige Department of Poultry Science at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) (Image: Getty Images)
According to the Status report, Leavitt reportedly found the photo so distasteful that AFP was “made aware” of the White House’s outrage and immediately withdrew it from its library.
The image was also later automatically removed from the Getty Images library. The exact photo is no longer available, although a similar image taken during the same briefing is included. AFP brand and communications director Grégoire Lemarchand confirmed that the White House had expressed its displeasure about the image, but insisted that the decision to pull the photo was an “internal editorial” one due to what he described as a “bad” camera angle.
“During high-volume events like White House briefings, large numbers of photos often arrive on our desk directly from the photographer’s camera, which are then quickly transferred by the editor on duty to ensure timely delivery,” Lemarchand told the outlet.
White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt (right) holds her son Nicholas as he waddles one of the National Thanksgiving turkeys in the White House press briefing room ahead of a turkey pardon ceremony with US President Donald Trump on November 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images) (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“Upon subsequent review of the day’s production, our editor-in-chief determined that this specific image did not meet our editorial standards. The angle was poor and, more importantly, we already had a selection of better images from the same event available on the wire,” he explained.
Lemarchand said, “Although we were told that White House staff found the photo distasteful, we want to clarify that there was no formal request to remove it, nor was there any external pressure involved.”
Anne Flanagan, Getty Images’ vice president of brand and communications, told the State that AFP retains full editorial rights over its photographs. He declined to confirm whether Getty had received a similar complaint from the White House regarding the image.
The episode comes as the Trump administration is reportedly tightening its grip on obnoxious media coverage. The Defense Department has banned press photographers from attending briefings on the Iran war after photos deemed “disgusting” of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were published, two sources familiar with the decision told The Washington Post.
Members of Hegseth’s team reportedly informed colleagues that they were unhappy with his appearance in photos taken during the March 2 briefing. Two sources familiar with the decision said photographers were subsequently excluded from the following two briefings at the Pentagon on March 4 and March 10.
The Irish Star has contacted Getty for comment.
