Gutfeld: Washington Post upended after 'crybabies got offended'
'Gutfeld' guests discuss the backlash Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel received from his colleagues after retweeting a joke on Twitter.
A second Washington Post reporter is openly pushing back against colleague Felicia Sonmez, who's been railing against the paper for the past several days.
Washington Post executive editor Sally Buzbee issued a memo to staff on Tuesday in hopes of having them be "collegial" and stop the viral hostility among co-workers after Sonmez spearheaded backlash towards reporter Dave Weigel over his retweet of a joke that mocked women.
"In this newsroom, we share many important common values: a belief in the power of journalism. Hatred of racist or sexist behavior, language or systems. A conviction that when people come together in good faith, with respect and trust, it creates an environment that enables each person to do powerful and important work. We also occasionally disagree: We come from different backgrounds and experiences, and we each see the world differently. That combination of shared values and diversity of viewpoints is our greatest strength," Buzbee began on Tuesday in a memo obtained by Fox News.
Buzbee then listed policies the Post will enforce "in the strongest of terms."
"We do not tolerate colleagues attacking colleagues either face to face or online," Buzbee wrote. "Respect for others is critical to any civil society, including our newsroom. The newsroom social media policy points specifically to the need for collegiality."
She continued, "We also do not tolerate violations of our Policy Prohibiting Workplace Harassment and our Policy on Prohibition of Discrimination, which further set forth our expectations for employees and are designed to create an inclusive environment where all Post employees can perform their best work."
Washington Post executive editor Sally Buzbee issued a second memo to staff following days of hostility on Twitter among employees. (Celeste Sloman for the Washington Post)
Buzbee went on to address the Sonmez-Weigel spat, writing, "We respect and do not wish to inhibit any employee’s right to raise legitimate workplace issues. We know it takes bravery to call out problems. And we pledge to openly and honestly address problems brought to us. We moved quickly to show our intolerance for a sexist re-tweet sent by an employee last Friday."
"To be clear: We will enforce our policies and standards," Buzbee warned.
Several Washington Post staffers took to Twitter showing solidarity in response to the memo, many of them tweeting that the paper "isn't perfect" but praising colleagues as being "collegial" and expressing to be "proud" to work there.
Except Sonmez mocked the "collegial" descriptor, highlighting Post reporter Jose A. Del Real, who had blocked her on Twitter after he was the first among the paper's staff to criticize her for publicly shaming Weigel, which sparked a feud between the two.
"So I hear The Washington Post is a collegial workplace," Sonmez quipped.
She then shared screenshots of Del Real's comments towards her, writing, "These tweets falsely accusing me of ‘clout chasing,’ ‘bullying,’ ‘cruelty’ and directing an ‘eager mob’ to carry out ‘a barrage online abuse’ are still up … even after I repeatedly raised them to management and noted that I’ve been receiving threats and abuse. Collegial!"
Washington Post reporter Lisa Rein urged Felicia Sonmez to "please stop" attacking colleagues. (Twitter)
That prompted the Post's federal government reporter Lisa Rein to wade in.
"Please stop," Rein pleaded to Sonmez.
Sonmez fired back, "Please stop … requesting that tweets from a colleague falsely accusing me of ‘bullying’ and 'clout chasing' be taken down?"
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"Do you have any idea of the torrent of abuse I’m facing right now?" Sonmez asked Rein while sharing screenshots of various attacks being tweeted at her.
Rein did not publicly respond to Sonmez and did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Washington Post reporters Lisa Rein and Felicia Sonmez (Wendy Galietta/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Last week, Dave Weigel shared a joke by YouTube host Cam Harless, who said, "Every girl is bi. You just have to figure out if it’s polar or sexual."
Sonmez then shared a screenshot of that retweet and called him out as well as their employer.
"Fantastic to work at a news outlet where retweets like this are allowed!" Sonmez reacted.
The Washington Post condemned the retweet, telling Fox News, "Editors have made clear to the staff that the tweet was reprehensible and demanding language or actions like that will not be tolerated."
Weigel also removed the retweet from his Twitter page and issued an apology, saying he "did not mean to cause any harm."
Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel was suspended after he retweeted someone else's joke that mocked women. (Eric McCandless via Getty Images)
CNN broke the news on Monday that Weigel was placed on a one-month unpaid suspension.
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Weigel did not respond to Fox News' requests for comment. An auto-response from Weigel's work email replied, "I am out of the office and will return on July 5." A spokesperson for the Washington Post declined to comment on the personnel matter.
Critics blasted the Post for its harsh punishment of Weigel, calling the paper's actions "completely insane."
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