Photographer admits editing Trump's inauguration pictures
Washington, Sep 8: A US government photographer told investigators that he intentionally cropped photos of President Donald Trump's inauguration to remove empty space and make the audience look larger, according to newly released documents.
The admission on Friday, contained in newly released records from an investigation last year, shed new light on what happened after the National Park Service on January 20, 2017, shared a social media post comparing the crowds that attended the inaugurations of Trump and former President Barack Obama, reports CNN.
Trump claimed footage of the event did not jive with the number of people he saw from the stage
His then-press secretary, Sean Spicer, gathered reporters the following evening and claimed: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration... Period."
The identity of the photographer and many other government officials are redacted from the documents. The documents recount the call Trump placed on his first full day in office to the then-acting park service director, Michael Reynolds.
Reynolds told investigators he spoke with Trump on the morning after the inauguration, and that the President "asked him to provide pictures of the inauguration", investigators wrote in their notes.
Spicer also reached out to the park service, and a staffer said she understood he asked "for NPS to provide photographs in which it appeared the inauguration crowd filled the majority of the space in the photograph".
The request for additional photographs was relayed to at least two park service photographers who had worked at the event, CNN reported.
One told investigators he arrived to his office about 30 minutes after Trump and Reynolds spoke, and that he cropped the photos, including removing "the bottom where the crowd ended".
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Second PUC results: Life convict clears exam with distinction, DGP lauds effort
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Bengaluru: A life convict lodged in Ballari Central Prison has successfully cleared the second PUC examination.
Ashok Kumar S, who appeared for the examination under prison escort, secured 481 marks out of 600, registering 80.1 percent.
Director General of Police (Prisons and Correctional Services), Alok Kumar (IPS), shared the development on his official ‘X’ handle, commending the inmate’s achievement.
In his post, he stated that it was heartening to see a life convict score over 80 percent in the examination, adding that the inmate had appeared from Ballari Central Prison under escort.
It’s heartening to see that one of our life convict prisoners Ashok has obtained 80.1% marks in PUC exam. He appeared under Prison escort from Ballari Central Prison for his exams.
— alok kumar (@alokkumar6994) April 9, 2026
Glad to see that Walls of the prison has not subdued his hopes for a better future. pic.twitter.com/Nzlcy076SR
He further noted that the achievement reflected that the “walls of the prison have not subdued his hopes for a better future.”
Alok Kumar in his post also shared the result sheet of Ashok.
The Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) declared the second PUC results for 2026 on April 9.
A total of 6,32,200 students appeared for the examination across all streams, of whom 5,46,698 passed, recording an overall pass percentage of 86.48 per cent.
