New York Times reporters hit back at boss for questioning objectivity: ‘Your staff is not full of activists’
NYT executive editor Joe Kahn said the paper was not a 'safe space'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Staff reporters at The New York Times bashed their boss after executive editor Joe Kahn said the paper was "not a safe space" and should reflect multiple points of view.
"Your staff is not full of activists trying to impose their views on the report," a draft letter to Kahn shared with Semafor reads. "Rather than tribalism or ideology, those who voice concerns do so in the interest of accuracy and fairness — to make The New York Times into the best version of itself."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Staff reporters at The New York Times bashed their boss after executive editor Joe Kahn said that the paper was not a "safe space." (Getty Images)
Kahn previously told Semafor that the press room is "not a safe space" and that "young adults" are not totally "accustomed" to "open debate" and a "robust exchange of views." He also said some New York Times staffers are not "fully prepared for what we are asking our people to do, which is to commit themselves to the idea of independent journalism."
The staffers rejected Kahn's assertions that young reporters were enforcing ideological conformity.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kahn said he would not allow the Times to become an "instrument of the Biden campaign." (Main: Photo by Kena Betancur/VIEWpress Circle: Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
"Instead of engaging in robust exchange, we are increasingly discouraged from speaking up at all," The New York Times staffers wrote. "We are told that it is only appropriate to express concerns or even earnest questions in one-on-one conversations with people who outrank us."
"Far from open mindedness, this policy communicates the opposite: an unwillingness to tolerate dissent," the staffers continued.
The staff called Kahn's criticisms "broad generalizations that reflect a poor understanding of the people who make up your newsroom."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"At the moment, democracy is [a top issue]. But it’s not the top one — immigration happens to be the top [of polls], and the economy and inflation is the second," Kahn said during his previous interview with Semafor. "Should we stop covering those things because they’re favorable to Trump and minimize them? I don’t even know how it’s supposed to work in the view of Dan Pfeiffer or the White House."
Kahn has also come at odds with the White House. He told Semafor the role of news reporters is to serve the American people, not a particular political candidate and that he would not allow the Times to become an "instrument of the Biden campaign."
The New York Times did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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