NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) — A lewd photograph of a crotch sent from the Twitter account of U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner is just “a distraction” perpetrated by a hacker, his spokesman said Sunday.

Dave Arnold told The Associated Press in an email that the tweet, directed at a woman, was “a distraction” from the married New York Democrat’s “important work representing his constituents.”

“Anthony’s accounts were obviously hacked,” Arnold said. “He doesn’t know the person named by the hacker, and we will be consulting on what steps to take next.”

1010 WINS’ Sonia Rincon has more on the hacked Twitter post.

The photo showed a man’s bulging underpants.

It first was reported Saturday by BigGovernment.com, a website run by conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart. The site said the photo was tweeted to a Seattle woman.

The woman released the following statement in response to the incident:

“I am a 21-year-old college student from Seattle. I have never met Congressman Weiner, though I am a fan. I go to school in Bellingham where I spend all of my time; I’ve never been to New York or to DC. The point I am trying to make is that, contrary to the impression that I apparently gave from my tweet, I am not his girlfriend.”

The photo was quickly deleted.

1010 WINS’ Steve Sandberg reports: Indecent Exposure

Weiner later joked about the account hacking on Twitter, asking whether his kitchen blender would be next to “attack” him.

Weiner represents New York’s 9th District, which covers parts of Queens and Brooklyn, where he was born and raised. He failed in a 2005 bid for the Democratic nomination for mayor of the city but still is widely considered a contender for the office.

He has worked on issues including public housing, homeland security and energy for his constituents.

Weinger, 46, is married to Huma Abedin, an aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)