Business & Tech
James Bennet, New York Times Op-Ed Editor, Resigns Over Backlash
Bennet is resigning after critique over a recent Times Opinion column written by Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton.
NEW YORK, NY — James Bennet, the editorial page editor of the New York Times since 2016, is resigning after backlash over the publication of a column written by Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton calling for further military presence at protests against police brutality that escalate into violence.
Times' publisher A.G. Sulzberger announced the resignation in a memo to employees on Sunday.
“Last week we saw a significant breakdown in our editing processes, not the first we’ve experienced in recent years,” said Sulzberger in the memo. “James and I agreed that it would take a new team to lead the department through a period of considerable change.”
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The deputy editorial page editor Jim Dao is also being reassigned to the newsroom, according to the memo.
Katie Kingsbury, a deputy editorial page editor at the New York Times, will be the acting editorial page editor through the November election, Sulzberger said in the memo.
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Cotton's op-ed, titled "Send in the Troops" was first posted on the Times' website late Wednesday, where it was quickly met with critique from journalists at the paper, with some Times' reporters saying it endangered black employees.
A collection of staff members called in sick Thursday in protest.
On Thursday, Sulzberger and Bennet defended its publication, saying they believed it was important to discuss controversial ideas in a public forum. However, the New York Times later reported that Bennet had not read Cotton's piece before its publication.
Later on Thursday, the New York Times released a statement saying that a "rushed editorial process" led to the publication of a piece that did not meet its standards.
Trump tweeted Sunday in response to Bennet's resignation:
Opinion Editor at @nytimes just walked out. That’s right, he quit over the excellent Op-Ed penned by our great Senator @TomCottonAR. TRANSPARENCY! The State of Arkansas is very proud of Tom. The New York Times is Fake News!!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 7, 2020
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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