List of controversies involving The New York Times
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The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' has been involved in many controversies since its foundation in 1851. It is one of the largest newspapers in the United States and
the world In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
, and is considered to have worldwide influence and readership.


Russian Revolution, 1917–1920

In 1920,
Walter Lippmann Walter Lippmann (September 23, 1889 – December 14, 1974) was an American writer, reporter and political commentator. With a career spanning 60 years, he is famous for being among the first to introduce the concept of Cold War, coining the te ...
and
Charles Merz Charles Hesterman Merz (5 October 1874 – 14 or 15 October 1940) was a British electrical engineer who pioneered the use of high-voltage three-phase AC power distribution in the United Kingdom, building a system in the North East of England i ...
investigated the coverage of the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
by ''The New York Times'' from 1917 to 1920. Their findings, published as a supplement of ''
The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...
,'' concluded that ''The New York Times'' reporting was neither unbiased nor accurate, adding that the newspaper's news stories were not based on facts but "were determined by the hopes of the men who made up the news organizations." Lippmann and Merz alleged that the newspaper referred to events that had not taken place, atrocities that did not exist, and that it reported no fewer than 91 times that the Bolshevik regime was on the verge of collapse. "The news about Russia is an example of what people wanted to see, not what happened," Lippmann and Merz wrote. "The main censor and the main propagandist was the hope and fear in the minds of reporters and editors."


Anti-Ukrainian bias in the 20th and 21st centuries

''The New York Times'' was criticized for the work of reporter
Walter Duranty Walter Duranty (25 May 1884 – 3 October 1957) was an Anglo-American journalist who served as Moscow bureau chief of ''The New York Times'' for fourteen years (1922–1936) following the Bolshevik victory in the Russian Civil War (1918–1 ...
, who served as its Moscow bureau chief from 1922 through 1936. Duranty wrote a series of stories in 1931 on the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and won a Pulitzer Prize for his work at that time; however, he has been criticized for his denial of widespread famine, most particularly the
Holodomor The Holodomor ( uk, Голодомо́р, Holodomor, ; derived from uk, морити голодом, lit=to kill by starvation, translit=moryty holodom, label=none), also known as the Terror-Famine or the Great Famine, was a man-made famin ...
, the Ukraine famine in the 1930s.Conquest, R. Reflections on a Ravaged Century. W.W. Norton & Company. New York. 2000. In 2003, after the Pulitzer Board began a renewed inquiry, the ''Times'' hired
Mark von Hagen Mark Louis von Hagen (July 21, 1954 – September 15, 2019) was an American military historian who taught Russian, Ukrainian, and Eurasian history at Arizona State University. He was formerly at Columbia University. He was commissioned by ''The N ...
, professor of Russian history at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, to review Duranty's work. Von Hagen found Duranty's reports to be unbalanced and uncritical, and that they far too often gave voice to
Stalinist Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory o ...
propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
. In comments to the press he stated, "For the sake of The New York Times' honor, they should take the prize away."


Coverage of the Holocaust

The ''Times'' has been criticized for its coverage of
the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
. According to the 2005 book "''
Buried by the Times ''Buried by the Times'' is a 2005 book by Laurel Leff. The book is a critical account of ''The New York Times''s coverage of Nazi atrocities against Jews that culminated in the Holocaust. It argues that the news was often buried in the back pages ...
''" by
Laurel Leff ''Buried by the Times'' is a 2005 book by Laurel Leff. The book is a critical account of ''The New York Times''s coverage of Nazi atrocities against Jews that culminated in the Holocaust. It argues that the news was often buried in the back pages ...
, it buried in the back pages of the paper stories about the genocide of European Jews, and avoided mentions of Jewish victims of persecutions, deportations, and death camps. Between 1939 and 1945, the ''Times'' published more than 23,000 front-page stories - a half of which were about
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
- and only 26 were about the Holocaust. In the documentary ''Reporting on The Times: How the paper of record ignored the Holocaust'', past editors of the newspaper stated that there was a conscious decision to bury the paper's Holocaust coverage. Various motivations have been attributed to the decision to bury and minimize the Holocaust, all of which are linked to the ''Times''' publisher at the time,
Arthur Hays Sulzberger Arthur Hays Sulzberger (September 12, 1891December 11, 1968) was the publisher of ''The New York Times'' from 1935 to 1961. During that time, daily circulation rose from 465,000 to 713,000 and Sunday circulation from 745,000 to 1.4 million; the st ...
, who was Jewish. Some claim that Sulzberger feared the ''Times'' would be "viewed as 'a special pleader for the Jews'"—at a time when anti-Semitism was relatively common in the United States—if the Holocaust was given more prominent coverage. Others point to Sulzberger's
anti-Zionist Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. Although anti-Zionism is a heterogeneous phenomenon, all its proponents agree that the creation of the modern State of Israel, and the movement to create a sovereign Jewish state in the region of Palestine ...
views as a stronger motive. A
Reform Jew Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its ethical aspects to its ceremonial ones, and belief in a continuous searc ...
and an enthusiastic supporter of the
American Council for Judaism The American Council for Judaism (ACJ) is an organization of American Jews. In particular, it is notable for its historical opposition to Zionism, though it is Zionist today. The ACJ has also championed women's rights, including the right for women ...
, both of which heavily emphasize anti-Zionism, Sulzberger believed European Jews were partially responsible for their own demise in the Holocaust. Not even a personal visit to a concentration camp was enough to shake this conviction. In a 1946 speech, less than one year after his visit to a concentration camp, Sulzberger stated, “' is my judgment that thousands dead might now be alive' if 'the Zionists' had put 'less emphasis on statehood.'" In another speech that same year, Sulzberger downplayed the plight of displaced Jews, stating "they were 'but a minor percentage of the total of displaced persons' and therefore should not be receiving so much attention." According to the
International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) (until January 2013 known as the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research or ITF) is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1998 which ...
, " tempts to blame the Jews for causing their own genocide" and " oss minimization of the number of victims of the Holocaust" are forms of Holocaust denial and distortion. In September 1996, the ''Times'' released a statement admitting to "underplaying the Holocaust while it was taking place" and that " ippings from the paper show that the criticism is valid."


Los Alamos investigation

In 1999, ''The New York Times'' ran a series of stories about alleged theft of classified documents from
Los Alamos National Lab Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy (DOE), located a short distance northwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in ...
in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
. The prime suspect,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
-born U.S. citizen
Wen Ho Lee Wen Ho Lee or Li Wenho (; born December 21, 1939) is a Taiwanese-American scientist who worked for the University of California at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. He created simulations of nuclear explosions for the purposes of ...
, had his name leaked to ''The New York Times'' by U.S. Energy Department officials. Lee was indicted on 59 counts and jailed in
solitary confinement Solitary confinement is a form of imprisonment in which the inmate lives in a single cell with little or no meaningful contact with other people. A prison may enforce stricter measures to control contraband on a solitary prisoner and use additi ...
for 278 days until he accepted a
plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
from the government. The alleged breach of security became a
catalyst Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...
for the creation of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Lee was released after the government's case could not be proven.
President Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again f ...
issued a public apology to Dr. Lee over his treatment. The
federal judge Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state/provincial/local level. United States A US federal judge is appointed by the US President and confirmed by the US Senate in accordance with Article 3 of ...
in charge of the case,
James Aubrey Parker James Aubrey Parker (January 8, 1937 – September 16, 2022) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico. Education and career Born in Houston, Texas, Parker received a Bachelor of Arts d ...
, remarked that "top decision makers in the executive branch ... have embarrassed our entire nation and each of us who is a citizen." Lee filed a lawsuit under the Privacy Act alleging that officials had leaked false and incriminating information to the media before charges had been filed. Lee's lawsuit was settled in 2006, just before the
U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
was set to decide whether to hear the case. The issues were similar to those in the
Plame affair criminal investigation The Plame affair was a dispute stemming from allegations that one or more White House officials revealed Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agent Valerie Plame Wilson's undercover status. An investigation, led by special counsel Patrick Fitzgeral ...
, when ''The New York Times'' reporter
Judith Miller Judith Miller (born January 2, 1948) is an American journalist and commentator known for her coverage of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program both before and after the 2003 invasion, which was later discovered to have been based on ...
spent two-and-a-half months in jail rather than reveal her government source.


Anthrax attacks

In 2002, ''The New York Times'' columnist
Nicholas Kristof Nicholas Donabet Kristof (born April 27, 1959) is an American journalist and political commentator. A winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, he is a regular CNN contributor and an op-ed columnist for ''The New York Times''. Born in Chicago, Kristof was ...
wrote a series of columns indirectly suggesting that Steven Hatfill, a former U.S. Army
germ warfare Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill, harm or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war. Bio ...
researcher named as a "
person of interest "Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no leg ...
" by the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
, might be a "likely culprit" in the
2001 anthrax attacks The 2001 anthrax attacks, also known as Amerithrax (a portmanteau of "America" and "anthrax", from its FBI case name), occurred in the United States over the course of several weeks beginning on September 18, 2001, one week after the September 11 ...
. Hatfill was never charged with any crime. In 2004, Hatfill sued ''The New York Times'' and Kristof for
libel Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
, claiming
defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
and
intentional infliction of emotional distress Intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED; sometimes called the tort of outrage) is a common law tort that allows individuals to recover for severe emotional distress caused by another individual who intentionally or recklessly inflicted ...
. After years of proceedings, the case was dismissed in 2007, and the dismissal was upheld on appeal. In 2008, the case was appealed to the
U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
which refused to grant ''
certiorari In law, ''certiorari'' is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. ''Certiorari'' comes from the name of an English prerogative writ, issued by a superior court to direct that the record of ...
'', effectively leaving the dismissal in place. The basis for the dismissal was that Hatfill was a "public figure" and he had not proved malice on the part of ''The New York Times''.


Plagiarism


Jayson Blair

In 2003, ''The New York Times'' admitted that
Jayson Blair Jayson Thomas Blair (born March 23, 1976) is an American former journalist who worked for ''The New York Times''. He resigned from the newspaper in May 2003 in the wake of the discovery of fabrication and plagiarism in his stories. Blair publis ...
, one of its reporters, had committed repeated
journalistic fraud Journalism scandals are high-profile incidents or acts, whether intentional or accidental, that run contrary to the generally accepted ethics and standards of journalism, or otherwise violate the 'ideal' mission of journalism: to report news eve ...
over a span of several years. Blair immediately resigned following the incident. Questions of affirmative action in journalism were also raised, since Blair is
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
. Jonathan Landman, Blair's editor, said he felt that Blair's being
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
played a large part in Blair being promoted in 2001 to a full-time staffer. The paper's top two editors –
Howell Raines Howell Hiram Raines (; born February 5, 1943) is an American journalist, editor, and writer. He was executive editor of ''The New York Times'' from 2001 until he left in 2003 in the wake of the scandal related to reporting by Jayson Blair. In 20 ...
, the executive editor, and
Gerald M. Boyd Gerald Michael Boyd (October 3, 1950 – November 23, 2006) was an American journalist and editor. He was the first African-American metropolitan editor and managing editor at ''The New York Times'', after joining the newspaper in 1983 in its ...
, the managing editor – resigned their posts following the incident.


Relationship with the intelligence community


Judith Miller


Second Iraq War

Judith Miller Judith Miller (born January 2, 1948) is an American journalist and commentator known for her coverage of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program both before and after the 2003 invasion, which was later discovered to have been based on ...
wrote a series of prominently displayed articles suggesting Iraqi president Saddam Hussein was sourcing materials that could be used to make nuclear weapons. Chief among these was a front page article reporting Iraq's purchase of
aluminum tubes Aluminum tubes purchased by the nation of Iraq were intercepted in Jordan in 2001. In September 2002 they were publicly cited by the White House as evidence that Iraq was actively pursuing an atomic weapon. Prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, man ...
"which American officials believe were intended as components of centrifuges to enrich uranium." According to author
Michael Massing Michael Massing is an American writer based in New York City. He is a former executive editor of the ''Columbia Journalism Review''. He received a bachelor's degree from Harvard College and a master's degree from the London School of Economics. He ...
, the
aluminum tubes Aluminum tubes purchased by the nation of Iraq were intercepted in Jordan in 2001. In September 2002 they were publicly cited by the White House as evidence that Iraq was actively pursuing an atomic weapon. Prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, man ...
– which were mentioned in Secretary of State Colin Powell's speech to the United Nations – became "a key prop in the administration's case for war, and the ''Times'' played a critical part in legitimizing it." The reporting on the aluminum tubes, and reliance on anti-Saddam campaigner
Ahmed Chalabi Ahmed Abdel Hadi Chalabi ( ar, أحمد عبد الهادي الجلبي; 30 October 1945 – 3 November 2015) was an Iraqi politician, a founder of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) who served as the President of the Governing Council of ...
as a source, soon became a leading critique of the ''Times''' coverage leading up to the
2003 invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...
. In 2004, the ''Times'' published an editorial admitting that it uncritically propagated the claims of their intelligence sources, and contributed to an overall "pattern of misinformation" related to Iraq's nuclear ambitions.


Valerie Plame affair

In October 2005, Judith Miller was released from prison after 85 days, when she agreed to testify to
special prosecutor In the United States, a special counsel (formerly called special prosecutor or independent counsel) is a lawyer appointed to investigate, and potentially prosecute, a particular case of suspected wrongdoing for which a conflict of interest exis ...
Patrick Fitzgerald Patrick J. Fitzgerald (born December 22, 1960) is an American lawyer and partner at the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom since October 2012. For more than a decade, until June 30, 2012, Fitzgerald was the United States Attorney f ...
's grand jury after receiving a personal waiver, both on the phone and in writing, of her earlier confidential source agreement with Lewis "Scooter" Libby. No other reporter whose testimony had been sought in the case had received such a direct and particularized release. Her incarceration has helped fuel an effort in Congress to enact a federal
shield law A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from melee weapon, close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, ...
, comparable to the state shield laws that protect reporters in 31 of the 50 states. After her second appearance before the grand jury, Miller was released from her contempt of court finding. Miller resigned from the paper on November 9, 2005.


MoveOn.org ad controversy

On September 10, 2007, the ''Times'' ran a full-page advertisement for
MoveOn.org MoveOn (formerly known as MoveOn.org) is a progressive public policy advocacy group and political action committee. Formed in 1998 around one of the first massively viral email petitions, MoveOn has since grown into one of the largest grassroot ...
questioning the integrity of General
David Petraeus David Howell Petraeus (; born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from September 6, 2011, until his resignation on November 9, 2012. Prior to h ...
, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, entitled "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?" The ''Times'' charged
MoveOn.org MoveOn (formerly known as MoveOn.org) is a progressive public policy advocacy group and political action committee. Formed in 1998 around one of the first massively viral email petitions, MoveOn has since grown into one of the largest grassroot ...
, a liberal activist group, $65,000 for the advertisement. After the ''New York Post'' ran a story suggesting that the ''Times'' had a political bias in advertising rates, a spokeswoman for the paper said that it did not "distinguish the advertising rates based on the political content of the ad" and that "The advertising folks did not see the content of the ad before the rate was quoted." The paper said that its advertising rates varied for many reasons, with ad buyers getting discounts for bulk buys or a "standby" rate, in which a buyer purchases an ad with no guarantee of a particular date or specific placement in the paper. MoveOn purchased a "standby" rate ad."Marketers, Take Note: 61% Price Chop for Ad in Grey Lady if You Buy Standby," ''Advertising Age'' (September 14, 2007). A subsequent full-page ad bought by Republican presidential hopeful
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...
to rebut MoveOn.org's original ad was purchased at the same standby rate. MoveOn later paid ''The Times'' the full rate once the newspaper said that "an advertising sales representative made a mistake" by having "failed to make it clear that for that rate ''the Times'' could not guarantee the Monday placement but left MoveOn.org with the understanding that the ad would run then." The ad was also controversial given that the ''Times'' internal advertising manual said that "We do not accept opinion advertisements that are attacks of a personal nature." The ''Times'' executive who approved the advertisement to run "said that, while it was 'rough,' he regarded it as a comment on a public official's management of his office and therefore acceptable speech for ''The Times'' to print."


Corporate-influence concerns

In their book ''
Manufacturing Consent ''Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media'' is a 1988 book by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky. It argues that the mass communication media of the U.S. "are effective and powerful ideological institutions that carry out a ...
'' (1988),
Edward S. Herman Edward Samuel Herman (April 7, 1925 – November 11, 2017) was an American economist, media scholar and social critic. Herman is known for his media criticism, in particular the propaganda model hypothesis he developed with Noam Chomsky, a fr ...
and
Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is ...
analyze major U.S. media outlets, with an emphasis on ''The Times''. They believe that a bias exists which is neither
liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...
nor
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
in nature, but aligned towards the interests of
corporations A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...
, which own most of these media outlets and also provide the majority of their advertising revenue. The authors explain that this bias functions in all sorts of ways:
"by selection of topics, by distribution of concerns, by emphasis and framing of issues, by filtering of information, by bounding of debate within certain limits. They determine, they select, they shape, they control, they restrict — in order to serve the interests of dominant, elite groups in the society."
Chomsky and Herman also touch on the importance of this perceived bias in ''The Times'':
"history is what appears in ''The New York Times'' archives; the place where people will go to find out what happened is ''The New York Times''. Therefore it's extremely important if history is going to be shaped in an appropriate way, that certain things appear, certain things not appear, certain questions be asked, other questions be ignored, and that issues be framed in a particular fashion."


Duke University lacrosse case reporting

Sports writer Selena Roberts made assertions that "Something happened March 13." Furthermore, Roberts writes, "Players have been forced to give up their DNA, but to the dismay of investigators, none have come forward to reveal an eyewitness account." Johnson points out that this statement was not true. The captains' March 28, 2006 statement or examined the defense attorneys' subsequent press conference both described the captains' cooperation with police, occurred before she penned her column. The Times never ran a correction. Later Roberts in an interview in the Big Lead said, "I wrote that a crime didn't have to occur for us to inspect the irrefutable evidence of misogyny and race baiting that went on that night."
Daniel Okrent Daniel Okrent (born April 2, 1948) is an American writer and editing, editor. He is best known for having served as the first public editor of ''The New York Times'' newspaper, inventing Rotisserie League Baseball, and for writing several books ( ...
, former Times ombudsman admitted to the bias in the Times coverage of the case. He said, "It was too delicious a story. It conformed too well to too many preconceived notions of too many in the press: white over black, rich over poor, athletes over non-athletes, men over women, educated over non-educated. Wow. That's a package of sins that really fit the preconceptions of a lot of us."


John McCain-lobbyist article criticism

The February 21, 2008 ''The New York Times'' published an article on
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
's alleged relationship with lobbyist
Vicki Iseman Vicki L. Iseman (born 1967) is an American lobbyist working for the firm Iseman & Szelinga. As a lobbyist for the firm Alcalde & Fay she gained national media attention in February 2008, and again in May 2022, due to her involvement in the John ...
and other involvement with special interest groups. The article received widespread criticism among both liberals and conservatives, McCain supporters and non-supporters, as well as
talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...
personalities. Robert S. Bennett, whom McCain had hired to represent him in this matter, defended McCain's character. Bennett, who was the special investigator during the
Keating Five File:AlanCranston.jpg, Alan Cranston (D-CA) File:Dennis DeConcini.jpg, File:John Glenn Low Res.jpg, John Glenn (D-OH) File:John McCain.jpg, John McCain (R-AZ) File:Riegle2.jpg, Donald Riegle (D-MI) The Keating Five were five United States Sen ...
scandal that ''The Times'' revisited in the article, said that he fully investigated McCain back then and suggested to the
Senate Ethics Committee The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics is a select committee of the United States Senate charged with dealing with matters related to senatorial ethics. It is also commonly referred to as the Senate Ethics Committee. Senate rules require the ...
to not pursue charges against McCain.
"And if there is one thing I am absolutely confident of, it is John McCain is an honest and honest man. I recommended to the Senate Ethics Committee that he be cut out of the case, that there was no evidence against him, and I think for the New York Times to dig this up just shows that Senator McCain's public statement about this is correct. It's a smear job. I'm sorry. "
Former staffer to President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
and
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
campaigner
Lanny Davis Lanny Jesse Davis (born December 12, 1945) is an American political operative, lawyer, consultant, lobbyist, author, and television commentator. He is the co-founder and partner of the law firm of Davis Goldberg & Galper PLLC, and co-founder and ...
said the article "had no merit." Stating that he did not support McCain's bid for the White House, Davis, who had himself lobbied for the same cause Iseman lobbied McCain for, said that McCain only wrote a letter to the FCC to ask them to "act soon" and refused to write a letter that supported the sale of the television station the article talked about. Journalistic observers also criticized the article, albeit in a milder language.
Tom Rosenstiel Tom Rosenstiel is an American author, journalist, press critic, researcher and academic. He is the Eleanor Merrill Visiting Professor on the Future of Journalism at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland. He was fo ...
, the director of the
Project for Excellence in Journalism The Project for Excellence in Journalism was a tax-exempt research organization in the United States that used empirical methods to evaluate and study the performance of the press. The organization's director was Tom Rosenstiel, a professor of j ...
, suggested that the article does not make clear the nature of McCain's alleged "inappropriate" behavior: "The phrasing is just too vague." The article was later criticized by the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
and by several news organizations including the ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
'' editorial board. Commentator Bill O'Reilly raised the question about why the paper had endorsed McCain on January 25, 2008, for the Republican nomination if they had information that alleged an inappropriate relationship. The ''
Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'', owned by the ''Times'', declined to publish the story, choosing instead to run a version of the same story written by the competing Washington Post staff. That version focused almost exclusively on the pervasive presence of lobbyists in McCain's campaign and did not mention the sexual relationship that the Times article hinted at. In response to the criticism, the ''Times'' editor
Bill Keller Bill Keller (born January 18, 1949) is an American journalist. He was the founding editor-in-chief of ''The Marshall Project'', a nonprofit that reports on criminal justice in the United States. Previously, he was a columnist for ''The New Yor ...
was "surprised by the volume" and "by how lopsided the opinion was against our decision o publish the article. The diverse sentiments by the readers were summarized in a separate article by
Clark Hoyt Clark Hoyt is an Americans, American journalist who was the ombudsman, public editor of ''The New York Times'', serving as the "readers' representative." He was the newspaper's third public editor, or ombudsman, after Daniel Okrent and Byron Calame ...
, the ''Times''
public editor A public editor is a position existing at some news publications; the person holding this position is responsible for supervising the implementation of proper journalism ethics at that publication. These responsibilities include identifying and ex ...
, who concluded: "I think it is wrong to report the suppositions or concerns of anonymous aides about whether the boss is getting into the wrong bed." In September 2008, McCain senior aide
Steve Schmidt Stephen Edward Schmidt (born September 28, 1970) is an American communications and public affairs strategist who worked on Republican political campaigns, including those of President George W. Bush, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...
charged: "Whatever The New York Times once was, it is today not by any standard a journalistic organization. It is a pro-Obama advocacy organization that every day impugns the McCain campaign, attacks Sen. McCain, attacks Gov. Palin. ... Everything that is read in The New York Times that attacks this campaign should be evaluated by the American people from that perspective." In December 2008, Iseman filed a lawsuit against ''The New York Times'', alleging that the paper had defamed her by, in her view, falsely implying that she had an illicit romantic relationship with McCain. In February 2009, the suit "was settled without payment and ''The Times'' did not retract the article."
Richard Pérez-Peña Richard Pérez-Peña (born May 26, 1963 in Santiago, Cuba) is a Cuban-American journalist who has been with ''The New York Times'' since 1992. He has covered topics relating to Albany, New Jersey, healthcare, the media, and higher education. He ...

Libel Suit Against The Times Ends
, ''New York Times'' (February 19, 2009).
Unusually, however, ''The Times'' agreed to publish a statement from Iseman's lawyers on the ''Times'' website.


Alessandra Stanley errors

Alessandra Stanley is a television critic. Complaints were raised regarding the accuracy of her reporting. Her tribute to Walter Cronkite on July 18, 2009, had eight factual errors. Clark Hoyt, the
public editor A public editor is a position existing at some news publications; the person holding this position is responsible for supervising the implementation of proper journalism ethics at that publication. These responsibilities include identifying and ex ...
of ''The New York Times'' described Stanley as "much admired by editors for the intellectual heft of her coverage of television" but "with a history of errors". ''The New York Times'' printed a correction:
An appraisal on Saturday about Walter Cronkite's career included a number of errors. In some copies, it misstated the date that Martin Luther King Jr. was killed and referred incorrectly to Cronkite's coverage of D-Day. King was killed on April 4, 1968, not April 30. Mr. Cronkite covered the D-Day landing from a warplane; he did not storm the beaches. In addition, Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969, not July 26. "The CBS Evening News" overtook "The Huntley-Brinkley Report" on NBC in the ratings during the 1967-68 television season, not after Chet Huntley retired in 1970. A communications satellite used to relay correspondents' reports from around the world was Telstar, not Telestar. Howard K. Smith was not one of the CBS correspondents Mr. Cronkite would turn to for reports from the field after he became anchor of "The CBS Evening News" in 1962; he left CBS before Mr. Cronkite was the anchor. Because of an editing error, the appraisal also misstated the name of the news agency for which Mr. Cronkite was Moscow bureau chief after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. At that time it was United Press, not United Press International.
An earlier contentious wording was on September 5, 2005, in an article on Hurricane Katrina where she wrote "Fox's Geraldo Rivera did his rivals one better: yesterday, he nudged an Air Force rescue worker out of the way so his camera crew could tape him as he helped lift an older woman in a wheelchair to safety." The Times later acknowledged that no nudge was visible on the broadcast tape.


Anti-Indian sentiment

An article published in 2017 in the ''Times'' (titled "In India, fashion has become a nationalist cause") was criticized by Indian Twitter users and some commentators, such as Barkha Dutt, for suggesting that the sari was co-opted by the Hindutva movement. Critics said that the article was inaccurate and Orientalism, Orientalist.


Abu Huzaifa al-Kanadi

Caliphate, a podcast for ''The New York Times'', has received criticism numerous times after Abu Huzaifa al-Kanadi admitted on the podcast that he "murdered people" while he was fighting for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Islamic State group. Numerous conservatives called for action against him after his statement, including Candice Bergen (politician), Candice Bergen. She criticized the liberal government after not ordering law enforcement against him. Bergen also called for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale to reveal whether the government knows where he is or not, but Goodale stated that it was the "opposition of keeping Canadians safe". Huzaifa also received concerns from television journalist Diana Swain that he may be "lying" to ''The New York Times'' or CBC News. In December 2020 the New York Times admitted that it could not verify the claims made in the podcast. Later, the podcast was withdrawn as a Pulitzer finalist.


Publishing leaked photos from the Manchester bombing

On May 24, 2017, ''The New York Times'' caused outrage among the British police and government when it published leaked photos showing the scene of the Manchester Arena bombing. Counter terror police chiefs said the leak undermined their investigation and victims' and witnesses' confidence. ''The New York Times'' published photos it says were gathered by UK authorities at the scene of the attack, including the remnants of a backpack, nuts and screws, and a device identified as a "possible detonator". Greater Manchester Police were said to be "furious" and said they would stop sharing information with the United States. Presidency of Donald Trump, President Donald Trump the next day in a NATO summit condemned the media leaks, calling it "deeply troubling" and a "grave threat to our national security". ''The New York Times'' defended its decision to publish the photos, saying they were "neither graphic nor disrespectful of victims".


Hiring of Sarah Jeong

In August 2018, the ''Times'' hired Sarah Jeong to join its editorial board as lead writer on technology, commencing in September. The hiring sparked a strongly negative reaction in conservative media, which highlighted derogatory Twitter, tweets about white people that Jeong had posted mostly in 2013 and 2014. Critics characterized her tweets as being racist; Jeong said that the posts were "counter-trolling" in reaction to harassment she had experienced, and that she regretted adopting this tactic. The ''Times'' stated that it had reviewed her social media history before hiring her, and that it did not condone the posts.


Antisemitism


Antisemitic cartoon

On April 25, 2019, the ''Times'' international print edition published a cartoon, drawn by Portuguese cartoonist António Moreira Antunes, featuring U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump was shown wearing a kippah and Netanyahu was displayed as Trump's dog wearing a collar with the Star of David. The Israeli edition of the newspaper was published at the end of Passover. After criticism from public and religious figures, the ''Times'' affirmed it used antisemitic tropes. On April 28 ''The Times'' issued an apology. On May 1, 2019, the ''Times'' announced that the editor who published the cartoon, whose name has never been released, would be "disciplined." The ''Times'' also announced the cancellation of a contract the paper had with the syndicate that provided the cartoon and that the ''Times'' would "update its bias training to include a focus on anti-Semitism." On June 10, 2019, citing the antisemitic cartoon, the ''Times'' announced its international edition was ending the publication of daily political cartoons.


Antisemitic political editor

On August 22, 2019, a politics desk editor at the ''Times'', Tom Wright-Piersanti, was revealed to have posted several antisemitic tweets while working at another outlet before joining the ''Times''. He had posted several anti-Indian tweets as well. His tweets included phrases such as "Crappy Jew Year," and "Jew police." The ''Times'' reconsidered his future, but ultimately decided to continue his employment.


"Influential Rabbis" and the Iron Dome

On September 23, 2021, an article written by reporter Catie Edmondson stated that Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had tearfully changed her vote from “no” to “present” on a vote to fund the Iron Dome because of the pressure exerted on Ocasio-Cortez by "influential lobbyists and rabbis". The claim was criticized on the grounds that discussion of "influential rabbis" echoed Antisemitic trope, antisemitic tropes, with critics asking which rabbis were known to have influence on Ocasio-Cortez; that Edmondson had attributed motives to Ocasio-Cortez without any factual basis; and that one could support the Iron Dome, a defensive installment that protects civilians, if one had been influenced by lobbyists or rabbis. Representative Ritchie Torres called Edmondson's article an example of "casual antisemitism"; the phrase "influential rabbis" was Stealth edit, stealth-edited out of the online version of the story but appeared in print.


Swastika crossword puzzle

In 2022, the ''Times'' was criticized after many readers claimed that its December 18 The New York Times crossword puzzle, crossword grid resembled a Nazi swastika. Some were particularly upset that the puzzle was published on the first night of Hanukkah. In a statement, the ''Times'' claimed the resemblance was unintentional, stemming from the grid's rotational symmetry. The ''Times'' was also criticized in 2017 and 2014 for crossword grids that resembled a swastika, which it both times defended as a coincidence.


Delayed publication of 2005 NSA warrantless surveillance story

''The New York Times'' learned of the National Security Agency (NSA) NSA warrantless surveillance (2001–07), warrantless surveillance program as early as autumn 2004, before the 2004 United States presidential election, 2004 presidential election between George W. Bush and John Kerry. However, the newspaper did not publish reporting on the secret program (obtained by James Risen and Eric Lichtblau) until late December 2005, after more than a year.James Rainey
Critics Question Timing of Surveillance Story
''Los Angeles times'' (December 20, 2005).
When it published the article, the newspaper reported that it had delayed publication because the George W. Bush White House had argued that publication "could jeopardize continuing investigations and alert would-be terrorists that they might be under scrutiny." The timing of the ''New York Times'' story prompted debate' the ''Los Angeles times'' noted that "critics on the left wondering why the paper waited so long to publish the story and those on the right wondering why it was published at all." ''Times'' executive editor
Bill Keller Bill Keller (born January 18, 1949) is an American journalist. He was the founding editor-in-chief of ''The Marshall Project'', a nonprofit that reports on criminal justice in the United States. Previously, he was a columnist for ''The New Yor ...
denied that the timing of the reporting was linked to any external event, such as the December 2005 Iraqi parliamentary election, the impending publication of Risen's book ''State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration'', or the then-ongoing debate on Patriot Act reauthorization. Risen and Lichtblau won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2006. In an interview in 2013, Keller said that the newspaper had decided not to report the piece after being pressured by the Bush administration and being advised not to do so by ''The New York Times'' Washington bureau chief Philip Taubman, and that "Three years after 9/11, we, as a country, were still under the influence of that trauma, and we, as a newspaper, were not immune." In 2014, ''PBS Frontline'' interviewed Risen and Lichtblau, who said that the newspaper's plan was initially to not publish the story at all, and that "The editors were furious at me" and "thought I was being insubordinate." Risen wrote his book about the mass surveillance revelations after ''Times'' declined the piece's publication, and only released it after Risen told them that he would publish the book. Another reporter told NPR that the newspaper "avoided disaster" by ultimately publishing the story. Also in 2014, Edward Snowden cited the delay in the reporting in choosing not to supply ''The New York Times'' with his Global surveillance disclosures (2013–present), information about global surveillance programs; Snowden chose to go to the ''Guardian'' and ''The Washington Post'' instead.


M.I.A. quotes out of context (2009–10)

In February 2009, a ''Village Voice'' music blogger accused the newspaper of using "chintzy, Ad hominem, ''ad-hominem'' allegations" in an article on British Tamil music artist M.I.A. (artist), M.I.A. concerning her activism against the Sri Lankan civil war, Sinhala-Tamil conflict in Sri Lanka. M.I.A. criticized the paper in January 2010 after a travel piece rated post-conflict Sri Lanka the "#1 place to go in 2010". In June 2010, ''The New York Times Magazine'' published a correction on its cover article of M.I.A., acknowledging that the interview conducted by current ''W (magazine), W'' editor and then-''Times Magazine'' contributor Lynn Hirschberg contained a recontextualization of two quotes. In response to the piece, M.I.A. broadcast Hirschberg's phone number and secret audio recordings from the interview via her Twitter and website.


Nail salon series (2015)

In May 2015, a ''The New York Times'' Exposé (journalism), exposé by Sarah Maslin Nir on the working conditions of Manicurist, manicurists in New York City and elsewhere and the health hazards to which they are exposed attracted wide attention, resulting in emergency workplace enforcement actions by New York governor Andrew M. Cuomo. In July 2015, the story's claims of widespread illegally low wages were challenged by former ''The New York Times'' reporter Richard Bernstein (journalist), Richard Bernstein, in ''The New York Review of Books''. Bernstein, whose wife owns two nail salons, asserted that such illegally low wages were inconsistent with his personal experience, and were not evidenced by ads in the Chinese-language papers cited by the story. ''The New York Times'' editorial staff subsequently answered Bernstein's criticisms with examples of several published ads and stating that his response was industry advocacy. The independent ''NYT'' Public Editor also reported that she had previously corresponded with Bernstein and looked into his complaints, and expressed her belief that the story's reporting was sound. In September and October 2015, nail salon owners and workers protested at ''The New York Times'' offices several times, in response to the story and the ensuing New York State crackdown. In October, Reason (magazine), ''Reason'' magazine published a three-part re-reporting of the story by Jim Epstein, charging that the series was filled with misquotes and factual errors respecting both its claims of illegally low wages and health hazards. Epstein additionally argued that ''The New York Times'' had mistranslated the ads cited in its answer to Bernstein, and that those ads actually validated Bernstein's argument. In November 2015, ''The New York Times'' public editor concluded that the exposé's "findings, and the language used to express them, should have been dialed back — in some instances substantially" and recommended that "The Times write further follow-up stories, including some that re-examine its original findings and that take on the criticism from salon owners and others — not defensively but with an open mind."


Iran (2015)

A 2015 study claimed that ''The New York Times'' fed into an overarching tendency towards national bias. During the Nuclear program of Iran, Iranian nuclear crisis the newspaper minimized the "negative processes" of the United States while overemphasizing similar processes of Iran. This tendency was shared by other papers such as ''The Guardian'', ''Tehran Times'', and the Fars News Agency, while Xinhua News Agency was found to be more neutral while at the same time mimicking the foreign policy of the People's Republic of China.


2016 Democratic primaries

Responding to complaints alleging that the paper's news coverage favored
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
over Bernie Sanders during the Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2016, 2016 Democratic presidential primaries, ''The Times'' public editor Margaret Sullivan (journalist), Margaret Sullivan wrote that "The Times has not ignored Mr. Sanders's campaign, but it hasn't always taken it very seriously. The tone of some stories is regrettably dismissive, even mocking at times. Some of that is focused on the candidate's age, appearance and style, rather than what he has to say." ''Times'' senior editor Carolyn Ryan defended both the volume of ''The New York Times'' coverage (noting that Sanders had received about the same amount of article coverage as Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio) and its tone.


Hiring practices

In November 1979, a federal court gave approval to a settlement between ''The New York Times'' and a group of female ''Times'' employees who sued alleging sex discrimination. The settlement agreement was effective for a four-year period beginning in January 1979; under the agreement, the company amended existing equal opportunity targets and paid $350,000 in compensation and attorneys' fees for the plaintiffs, but was not required to "pay new or retroactive salary increases, make immediate promotions, revoke past employment practices or substantially change its present affirmative-action programs."The Times Settles Sex‐Bias Suit Filed by Female Workers in U.S. Court
''New York Times'' (Nov. 21, 1978).
James C. Goodale, the executive vice president of the New York Times Company, said that the settlement "completely vindicates The Times of any charge or hint of unfair employment practices." In April 2016, two black female employees in their sixties filed a federal class-action lawsuit against The New York Times Company executives; they claimed age discrimination, age, Gender discrimination, gender, and racial discrimination, alleging that the Times'' advertising department favored younger white employees over older black employees in making firing and promotion decisions. The ''Times'' said that the suit was "entirely without merit" and was "a series of recycled, scurrilous and unjustified attacks." The plaintiffs' gender discrimination claims were subsequently dismissed by the court, and the court also later denied class certification as to the age and racial discrimination claims.


Obituary of President Thomas S. Monson (2018)

The day after the passing of Thomas S. Monson, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, president of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on January 2, 2018, ''The New York Times'' posted an obituary covering his life but seemingly highlighting and focusing on the controversies that happened during his presidency. Afterwards, the obituary gained attention and quick criticism from Members of the church and non members and news organizations alike in which resulted in a petition which quickly gained over 170,000 signatures. The main issue of the obituary was pointed out at how much they wrote and focused on the controversies in Monson's presidency instead of his many accomplishments and charitable work. They've also compared the stark contrast in how people like Fidel Castro and Hugh Hefner's obituaries were written in a more favorable light. The Obituaries Editor William McDonald responded "I think the obituary was a faithful accounting of the more prominent issues that Mr. Monson encountered and dealt with publicly during his tenure. Some of these matters ''—'' the role of women in the church, the church's policy toward homosexuality and same-sex marriage, and more ''—'' were widely publicized and discussed, and it's our obligation as journalists, whether in an obituary or elsewhere, to fully air these issues from both sides. I think we did that, accurately portraying Mr. Monson's positions as leader of the church, and those of the faithful and others who questioned church policies. I think we also gave due credit to Mr. Monson's achievements: his openness to new work by scholars of the church, "allowing them" as we said, "remarkable access to church records"; his expansion of the church's global missionary force and his doubling the number of young women in the missionary ranks; and his embracing humanitarian causes, often in collaboration with Jewish, Muslim and other Christian groups. But I also acknowledge that many of those who found the obituary wanting feel we did not provide a more rounded view of Mr. Monson ''—'' perhaps his more human side. I'll concede that what we portrayed was the public man, not the private one, or the one known to his most ardent admirers. In 20/20 hindsight, we might have paid more attention to the high regard with which he was held within the church. I think by his very position in the church, all that was implied. But perhaps we should have stated it more plainly. Still, on balance, I think the obituary makes clear that he was a man of strong faith and convictions, who stood by them even in the face of detractors, while finding ways to move the church forward."


Elimination of copy editors (2018)

''The New York Times'' announced plans to eliminate copy editing roles from the production of its daily newspaper and website content in June 2018. Executive Editor Dean Baquet defended the cuts, saying that the ''Times'' needed to free up funds to hire more reporters by eliminating editing roles. (The opinion and magazine sections have still retained their copy editors.) The duties of copy editors—checking for style, grammar, factual correctness, tone, as well as writing headlines—were merged into all-purpose editing roles. Editors currently not only edit the content of the stories but also, in many cases, provide the final read before publication. Many publications, such as the ''The Chronicle of Higher Education, Chronicle of Higher Education'', have suggested the elimination of copy editors has led to more mistakes, such as typos and factual errors, in the paper. The Poynter Institute similarly suggested in a blog post that the elimination of copy editors would decrease internal expertise and hurt the quality of the daily news report.


1619 Project

The 1619 Project, a long-form journalism project re-evaluating Slavery in the United States, slavery and its legacy in the United States by investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, has been criticized by some historians. In December 2019, a group of historians wrote to ''The New York Times Magazine'', expressing concern over what they alleged were inaccuracies and falsehoods fundamental to Hannah-Jones' reporting. The magazine's editor-in-chief, Jake Silverstein, responded to the historians' letter in an editorial, in which he called into question the historical accuracy of some of the letter's claims. In an article in ''The Atlantic'', historian Sean Wilentz responded to Silverstein, writing, "No effort to educate the public in order to advance social justice can afford to dispense with a respect for basic facts" and disputed the accuracy of Silverstein's defense of the project. In September 2020, controversy arose over the ''Times'' updating the opening text of the project website to remove the phrase "understanding 1619 as our true founding" without accompanying editorial notes. Critics, including Bret Stephens of the ''Times'', claimed the difference showed that the newspaper was backing away from some of the initiative's more controversial claims. The ''Times'' defended its practices and Hannah-Jones emphasized how most of the project's content had remained unchanged—but also admitted that she was "absolutely tortured by" her failure to consult more expert historians before making the sweeping claims that were subsequently removed.


Tom Cotton editorial (2020)

During the George Floyd protests in June 2020, the ''Times'' published an opinion piece by U.S. Senator Tom Cotton entitled "Send in the Troops", which called for the mobilization of the U.S. military in response to rioting, and for "an overwhelming show of force to disperse, detain and ultimately deter lawbreakers", and which contained claims about the protests that the ''Times'' had previously identified as misinformation. Several current and former ''Times'' reporters criticized the decision to publish the piece and accused the newspaper of publishing misinformation. The NewsGuild of New York argued that the piece encouraged violence and lacked context and vetting. A. G. Sulzberger and editorial page editor James Bennet (journalist), James Bennet defended the piece, but the paper later issued a statement saying the piece failed to meet its editorial standards and described its publication as the result of a "rushed editorial process". Bennet resigned days later. Cotton criticized the ''Times'' for retracting his piece, saying that "''The New York Times'' editorial page editor and owner defended it in public statements but then they totally surrendered to a woke child mob from their own newsroom that apparently gets triggered if they're presented with any opinion contrary to their own, as opposed to telling the woke children in their newsroom this is the workplace, not a social justice seminar on campus".


Coverage of ''The Babylon Bee'' (2021)

In June 2021, Seth Dillon, the CEO of Conservatism in the United States, conservative Christianity, Christian news satire website ''The Babylon Bee'', threatened legal action against ''The New York Times'', alleging that they had Defamation, defamed the site in a March 2021 article by referring to ''The Babylon Bee'' as a "Far-right politics, far-right misinformation site". The ''Times'' first amended the article, then removed the descriptor and published a clarification about the labeling dispute between Snopes and ''The Babylon Bee''.


See also

* Al Jazeera controversies and criticism * CBS News controversies and criticism * CNN controversies * Fox News controversies * MSNBC controversies * Media bias * Media bias in the United States


References


External links

*
The New York Times on the Web
'

* Jacob Sullum, Sullum, Jacob (2010-04-28
Free Speech for Us: The Gray Lady's inconsistent defense of the First Amendment
''Reason Magazine, Reason'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Criticism Of The New York Times The New York Times Journalism controversies by media organ, New York Times