New York Times warns staffers to stop attacking each other in memo defending coverage of transgender issues

New York Times top editors cautioned staffers Thursday to stop attacking colleagues in a memo that defended the paper’s coverage of transgender issues.  

Earlier this week, multiple Hollywood celebrities and pro-LGBTQ advocacy groups joined Hollywood gay lobby, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), in torching the Times over its recent coverage of trans issues.

A letter composed by GLAAD, and signed by celebrities like Hollywood director Judd Apatow, actress Lena Dunham, and comedian Hannah Gadsby, trashed the Gray Lady for "irresponsible, biased coverage of transgender people" that it claims is "damaging all LGBTQ youth."

The letter demanded the paper "TAKE ACTION" against this type of reporting in the future, joined another signed by nearly 200 New York Times contributors admonishing the paper for the same reasons.

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Executive editor Joe Kahn and editor Kathleen Kingsbury penned the memo to staffers, noting that it’s "not unusual for outside groups to critique our coverage or to rally supporters to seek to influence our journalism," but Times’ staffers joining in is unacceptable. 

"In this case, however, members of our staff and contributors to The Times joined the effort. Their protest letter included direct attacks on several of our colleagues, singling them out by name," the memo said. "Participation in such a campaign is against the letter and spirit of our ethics policy. That policy prohibits our journalists from aligning themselves with advocacy groups and joining protest actions on matters of public policy. We also have a clear policy prohibiting Times journalists from attacking one another’s journalism publicly or signaling their support for such attacks."

Kahn and Kingsbury then defended the paper’s coverage of transgender issues as "deeply reported, and sensitively written."  

"The journalists who produced those stories nonetheless have endured months of attacks, harassment and threats. The letter also ignores The Times’ strong commitment to covering all aspects of transgender issues, including the life experience of transgender people and the prejudice and violence against them in our society. A full list of our coverage can be viewed here, and any review shows that the allegations this group is making are demonstrably false," Kahn and Kingsbury wrote. 

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"We realize these are difficult issues that profoundly affect many colleagues personally, including some colleagues who are themselves transgender. We have welcomed and will continue to invite discussion, criticism and robust debate about our coverage. Even when we don’t agree, constructive criticism from colleagues who care, delivered respectfully and through the right channels, strengthens our report," they continued. "We do not welcome, and will not tolerate, participation by Times journalists in protests organized by advocacy groups or attacks on colleagues on social media and other public forums."

It appears little has changed over the past three years. 

Former New York Times columnist Bari Weiss, who famously quit the Times in 2020 with a scathing resignation letter in which she detailed bullying by then colleagues, has ripped the paper’s reports "who treat the paper like a high school cafeteria." 

Her resignation letter addressed directly to Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger sent shock waves across the media industry. Weiss detailed a toxic work environment and said "showing up for work as a centrist at an American newspaper should not require bravery."  

Fox News’ Gabriel Hays contributed to this report. 

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