The New York Times is eliminating the public editor position created in 2003 after it was discovered that Jayson Blair, a former New York Times reporter, fabricated and plagiarized stories.
In a memo to staff, obtained by the Huffington Post, New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr., announced the position would be eliminated and explained the rationale behind the decision.
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“The responsibility of the public editor — to serve as the reader’s representative — has outgrown that one office,” Sulzberger said. “Our business requires that we must all seek to hold ourselves accountable to our readers. When our audience has questions or concerns, whether about current events or our coverage decisions, we must answer them ourselves.”
The public editor acted as an independent watchdog of the New York Times and frequently discussed media trends and reader concerns in columns on the newspapers’ opinion pages.
Liz Spayd, who became the sixth — and now final — public editor last year, will leave the New York Times on Friday.
Spayd took over as public editor for Margaret Sullivan, who served as the public editor for four years and is now a media columnist at the Washington Post.
Sullivan reacted to the New York Times’ decision to eliminate her former position in a series of tweets, and said she “isn’t surprised” to see the position terminated, particularly as the newsroom tries to cut costs and positions.
“A lot of news organizations have eliminated the ombudsman position, including my current employer, @washingtonpost, a few years ago. The one thing an ombud or public editor can almost always do is hold feet to the fire, and get a real answer out of management,” Sullivan said in a series of tweets.
“The role, by definition, is a burr under the saddle for the powers that be. I did feel, while doing it for almost four years, that I served an important purpose for the readership — and for the Times itself,” Sullivan said.
1. I can’t say I’m surprised to see NYT ending public editor position, especially in a time of newsroom cost-cutting and position-trimming.
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) May 31, 2017
2. A lot of news organizations have eliminated the ombudsman position, including my current employer, @washingtonpost, a few years ago.
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) May 31, 2017
3. The one thing an ombud or public editor can almost always do is hold feet to the fire, and get a real answer out of management.
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) May 31, 2017
4. The role, by definition, is a burr under the saddle for the powers that be.
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) May 31, 2017
5. I did feel, while doing it for almost four years, that I served an important purpose for the readership — and for The Times itself. -30-
— Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) May 31, 2017
