Color me white but how do you pronouce out loud (as opposed to on the internet) the name Niger?
I guess it would be the same as the country.
I agree with Nic's summary of Kennedy's book. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the word, only the meaning given to it. To me, all that nigger means is a person who has dark skin. And what's wrong with that. I personally don't use the word in everyday language because I theoretically don't believe that skin color makes any difference in life.
And if you accept what I say, then did the graphics guy screw up semantically? [let the flames begin, I don't care, it's only a word]