NY Times staffer wanted to check with Schumer before running Sen. Tim Scott op-ed, Bari Weiss says
Weiss spilled more drama on the liberal bias within the New York Times during her podcast Wednesday
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former New York Times reporter Bari Weiss claimed that a staffer at the Times sought to get an op-ed from Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., approved by then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., before publishing the article in 2020.
Weiss recounted the story of blatant media bias during the latest episode of her podcast, "Honestly with Bari Weiss," on Wednesday, with Scott as her featured guest.
The audio snippet, flagged by Mediaite on Thursday, featured Weiss describing the account to the South Carolina senator, who had been unaware of the incident.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Weiss, who made headlines in 2020 for leaving the New York Times due to what she called an "illiberal environment," recalled the debate between newsroom staffers over publishing a story on Scott’s 2020 legislation, the Justice Act.
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Former New York Times journalist Bari Weiss recounted a time when NY Times staff considered asking Sen. Chuck Schumer to approve a story for the outlet. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
During the podcast, Weiss and Scott spoke about the 2020 bill, which was aimed at establishing bi-partisan police reform in the wake of the murder of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis police officers. The bill was never signed into law.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I wanna tell you a little story that I’m not sure if you know," Weiss said to Scott, alerting him to the incident in 2020 when the New York Times newsroom debated publishing the senator’s "op-ed about the bill and why it fell apart."
She continued, "And this is the part I’m not sure if you know. There was a discussion about the piece and whether or not we should run it. And one colleague, a more senior colleague, said to a more junior colleague who was pushing for the piece, ‘Do you think the Republicans really care about minority rights?'"
"Wow," Scott replied to the smear.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Weiss’ story kept going. "And the more junior colleagues said, ‘I think Tim Scott cares about minority rights.’ And then, and here’s the pretty shocking part. The more senior colleague said, ‘Let’s check with Senator Schumer before we run it,’" the journalist recalled, providing the kicker the story.
Weiss indicated that the younger staffer refused to reach out the House minority leader, worried about ethics concerns.
Bari Weiss, a former New York Times columnist, famously quit the liberal paper in a scathing resignation letter that claimed she was bullied by colleagues in an "illiberal environment."
"Are you surprised to hear that? Or does that story feel kind of representative of the way the media has treated you and maybe some of your colleagues?" Weiss asked the lawmaker, though Scott claimed he was not surprised and added he had experienced such treatment before.
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"I am disappointed to hear that. I am not surprised to hear that. You have to remember that The Washington Post fact-checked my life," he claimed, referencing how the paper spent "three or four months" going through "records to find out whether or not my grandfather actually dropped out of the school in the third grade, their records suggested he dropped out in the fourth grade, but still didn’t learn to read."
"They wanted to know if I had somehow hidden my silver spoon and just was using a plastic spoon instead," the senator commented, adding, "there is something national media wants to frame any conservatives, particularly Black conservatives, as being disingenuous or insincere or a tool for the conservatives. When in fact the Black community is consistently as conservative as any community."
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(Former NY Times journalist Bari Weiss told Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., on Thursday that her former outlet debated asking Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for approval on publishing his op-ed in 2020.)