The Washington Post and New York Times are facing a furious backlash after publishing glowing eulogies for the Iranian regime’s slain dictator, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The Post, opening its obituary of Khamenei with language that softened the image of a brutal regime figure responsible for decades of repression and bloodshed.
Khamenei, who was killed Saturday during “Operation Epic Fury,” a coordinated U.S.–Israeli strike on Tehran, was described by the Post as having a “bushy white beard and an easy smile.”
The Post wrote of Khamenei:
“With his bushy white beard and easy smile, Ayatollah Khamenei cut a more avuncular figure in public than his perpetually scowling but much more revered mentor, and he was known to be fond of Persian poetry and classic Western novels, especially Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Misérables.’
“But like the uncompromising Khomeini, he opposed moderates’ efforts to promote political and social reforms domestically and to secure rapprochement with the United States.”
While the obituary went on to detail Khamenei’s consolidation of power and responsibility for tens of thousands of deaths under the Islamic Republic, critics seized on the warm-toned introduction, arguing it read more like a character sketch than an assessment of a hardline theocrat.
“This is sick,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) posted on X in response to the paragraph.
This is sick. https://t.co/wwZXr27zCG
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 1, 2026
Jennifer Sey, founder of XX-XY Athletics, called the framing “peak TDS.”
Actor James Woods added, “This is not satire,” as he reposted the description.
The backlash quickly extended beyond the Post.
The New York Times also referred to Khamenei as “avuncular” in its own obituary, similarly noting his literary interests and contrasting his demeanor with that of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Critics argued that such descriptions risked humanizing a regime leader long associated with violent crackdowns on dissent, sponsorship of terror groups, and hostility toward the United States and its allies.
The controversy also revived memories of 2019, when the Washington Post described ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as an “austere religious scholar” following his death during President Donald Trump’s first term.
The language drew similar backlash at the time.
Khamenei was eliminated alongside other senior regime figures as part of the ongoing military campaign against Iran.
According to officials cited by Fox News, Israel is targeting Iranian leadership figures, while U.S. forces are striking military facilities and ballistic missile sites deemed an “imminent threat.”
President Donald Trump warned Sunday that Tehran would face overwhelming consequences if it retaliates.
If Iran were to “hit very hard,” Trump said, it would be met with “a force that has never been seen before.”
As the conflict unfolds, media coverage of Khamenei’s legacy has become its own flashpoint, with critics arguing that tone matters when describing figures tied to decades of regional instability and anti-American aggression.
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