New York Times opinion editor who resigned over Tom Cotton op-ed uproar lands new gig

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The former New York Times editorial page editor who resigned following a staff-wide uproar over the publication of an op-ed by Republican Sen. Tom Cotton has landed a new job. 

James Bennet is set to begin work at The Economist for a year-long stint as a visiting senior editor.

"James is an outstanding editor and journalist," Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor-in-chief, said in a statement to Politico. "I’m delighted that we will benefit from his talent and expertise."

Bennet resigned from the Times in June following an uproar by staffers over his decision to publish Cotton's op-ed that month calling for using the military to quell violent uprisings in American cities. Dozens of the liberal newspaper's journalists tweeted their objections to the column, arguing it put Black Times staffers in danger, and left-wing 1619 project founder Nikole Hannah-Jones said she was "deeply ashamed" the paper published it.

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In response to the backlash, the newspaper conducted a review and concluded the column did not meet its standards for publication. It added an editor's note accusing Cotton of fudging facts about Antifa's role in civil unrest and using a "needlessly harsh" tone."

Bennet, who admitted he did not read Cotton's article before it went to print, initially defended the column's publication but resigned less than a week later. Editorial assistant Adam Rubenstein, who helped green-light the piece, left the newspaper six months later.

Bennet is the younger brother of Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. 

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In the media, Cotton's piece was frequently and incorrectly framed as the Arkansas Republican calling for the troops to put down peaceful protests for racial injustice. Rather, Cotton called for deploying federal troops if necessary to bolster local authorities dealing with riots in cities like New York.

The Times, which has printed op-eds by Vladimir Putin, the Taliban, and proponents of Chinese Communist Party propaganda, came under sharp criticism for its reaction to Cotton's article. Opinion writer and editor Bari Weiss resigned from the Times a month later and said Twitter had essentially become its editor.

Cotton ripped the Grey Lady at the time for surrendering to a "woke child mob from their own newsroom."

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"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," Cotton told Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures."