New York Times’ new leader ridiculed over ‘uncomfortable’ photoshoot: ‘This is not a serious person’

The New York Times named Joseph Kahn its new executive editor on Tuesday, prompting New York Magazine to publish a glowing profile on the new Gray Lady honcho that featured a widely mocked photo of the newspaper's new boss "relaxing" on the floor. 

Kahn was promoted from managing editor to the top job, succeeding Dean Baquet who is expected to exit the role in June. New York Magazine was ready for the big announcement, publishing a lengthy feature on Kahn that was quickly lampooned on social media over the bizarre photo. 

NEW YORK TIMES' HANNAH-JONES BECAME STAR WITH LIBERAL MEDIA HELP DESPITE 'FLAWED' 1619 PROJECT: AUTHOR

Fox News contributor Byron York shared a link to the story and many took notice of the accompanying photograph. 

"There has not been enough cringe produced in all of human history to properly react to this," author Jim Hanson responded to a photo of Kahn sprawled out on the floor, without shoes, leaning back while an open newspaper is laid on next to him. 

"I too ‘relax with the paper’ while sitting uncomfortably on the floor right next to my desk and chaise," one critic joked, referencing the photo caption that declared Kahn is "relaxing with the paper."

"I am uncomfortable," another observer noted, while many compared the photo to the infamous image of "Seinfeld" character George Costanza posing shirtless on a fainting couch, wearing only socks and underwear, in an attempt to appear alluring.   

"Draw me like one of your French girls," RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway joked.

NYT COLUMNIST PAUL KRUGMAN PREDICTS 'VIOLENCE' TOWARDS MASK WEARERS AFTER MANDATE LIFT

Journalist Libby Emmons remarked, "This is not a serious person," and journalist Mairead Elordi asked, "What was the goal here?" 

The photo has received most of the attention, but reporter Shawn McCreesh’s profile – which referred to the Times’ top editor gig as "journalism’s Iron Throne" – also puts a spotlight on the "fabulously wealthy" new leader of the Gray Lady. 

"He is the ultimate inside man, so sturdy, disciplined, and reverential to the mission of the Times that the very notion of him self-destructing seems improbable," McCreesh wrote. "Kahn had led me into the elevator and down the hallway lined with photographs of the paper’s Pulitzer Prize winners and into this room adorned with black-and-white pictures of the old printing press. The place was desolate, but the Times has never been bigger. It can hardly even be called a newspaper anymore. The company has some 5,000 full-time employees, and it produces documentaries and podcasts, newsletters and cooking apps." 

McCreesh then called Kahn a "fabulously wealthy Bostonian," who is known for "his reputation for adroitness and overachieving" and comes from a privileged upbringing. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"His father co-founded the office-supply retailer Staples — which has always been gossiped about quietly at the Times. He’s got a second home upstate. During the pandemic, he would Zoom in from there and reporters couldn’t help but notice its modernist opulence. The apartment building he lives in on lower Fifth Avenue is said to have once been inhabited by Marlon Brando. He and his wife, Shannon, who previously worked for the World Bank, send their two sons to a private school uptown," McCreesh wrote before insisting Kahn isn’t "flashy."

"But he does have a taste for the finer things. He is a familiar face at opening night of the Metropolitan Opera. He is an oenophile with a particular fondness for Burgundy and is part of a wine consortium that includes the billionaire Joseph Bae," McCreesh added before diving into a detailed recap of Kahn’s path from Harvard to his current role.