Most people on this blog are well aware of several instances when the NY Times’ editors chose to elevate (or lower) stories with consequence for our nation. They pushed the Emailz non-story to the top of the fold on the front page in the ten days before the 2016 election and downplayed serious stories of actual fraud like Trump University. In the years before that they never gave climate change the important position it deserves. Now there’s a thoughtful thread by Kendra Pierre-Louis, a science journalist who used to work for NYT, that provides important perspective. In response to the question, “What radicalized you?” Kendra answers,
“Working for the New York Times. I became a journalist because I wanted to tell stories that held truth to power, that punched up not down, that provided people with the information and the context to help create healthy sustainable societies that had successfully navigated climate change.“
And then the thread changes direction. Working for the NY Times, you might guess, did not always let her tell stories that held truth to power. I recommend reading the whole thread.
This is a great thread. We know that the Times is aimed at a very chi-chi readership — look at the ads. But that the cultural norms have such a toxic effect on the reporting itself … it’s eye-opening.
Anyway the thread is captured in more readable format here.