The sun rises above the New York Times Building in New York August 14, 2013 (Reuters)
New York:
James Bennet, The New York Times The editor of the editorial page responsible for publishing a column advocating the use of the military to quell violence amid protests against racial inequality in the United States resigned on Sunday, the newspaper said.
The New York Times came under criticism after publishing an editorial on June 3 by US Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, entitled “Send in the Troops”. Cotton wrote that a “crushing display of force” would restore order after the protests spread across the country, some of which became violent.
“It is time to support local law enforcement with federal authority,” wrote Cotton.
Bennet and a Cotton representative could not be reached for comment.
The column drew criticism from inside and outside the New York Times newsroom, with some readers and journalists interpreting the column as advocating actions that put protesters and journalists at risk.
The editor of the New York Times, A.G. Sulzberger, originally supported the publication of the column. “I believe in the principle of openness to a whole range of opinions, even those with which we do not agree, and this piece was published with this in mind,” he said in an email to Thursday. to staff, according to a New York Times account.
On Sunday, Sulzberger said in a note to staff that was seen by Reuters: “Last week we saw a major disruption in our editing processes, not the first we have experienced in recent years.”
Protests for racial justice erupted 13 days ago after the release of a video clip showing George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed black man in handcuffs, lying face down on a Minneapolis street on May 25 when a white policeman knelt near his neck for almost nine minutes.
Bennet will be replaced by Katie Kingsbury. Bennet had been the editor of the editorial page since 2016. He had helped expand the range of voices published by the newspaper and explore new formats, according to Sulzberger’s note to staff.
Before joining the New York Times as editor, Bennet was editor of the news magazine The Atlantic. He was in the running for the highest office in the New York Times when editor-in-chief Dean Baquet resigned, sources in the newsroom said.
Baquet was not immediately available for comment.
Bennet’s resignation comes as a number of newsrooms across the United States are examining their own balance sheets with diversity and sensitivity to the issues of people of color.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s editor, Stan Wischnowski, resigned on Saturday after employees came out to protest the title “Buildings Matter, Too”, about a story about the impact of the civil unrest on property.
“Stan Wischnowski has decided to resign as executive vice president and editor and move on to the next chapter in his career,” said Lisa Hughes, editor and CEO of Philadelphia Inquirer, in a prepared statement.
Wischnowski was not immediately available to comment.
(This story has not been edited by GalacticGaming staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
