Scarborough: NY Times ‘Lied Trying to Cover Up Their Own Mess’

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough tore into the leadership at the New York Times on Friday morning for what he characterized as a misleading self-defense over the reasons for the firing of former Executive Editor Jill Abramson. He observed that the Times admitted that the pay discrepancy issue was a factor even after they denied it at first. The appearance of a cover-up on this issue led Scarborough’s co-hosts to predict a backlash against the paper and even a wave of cancelled subscriptions from female subscribers.

Reading from the latest piece in the New Yorker, Scarborough noted that the Times confessed that their earlier statements about the firing of Abramson were incorrect and that her complaints about pay discrepancy were a factor in her dismissal. “It’s a stunning story,” Scarborough observed. “Stunning mismanagement.”

RELATED: New Yorker Piece Features Alleged, Actual Numbers for Abramson Pay Gap

“I think that the Times is going to feel a backlash,” BBC host Katty Kay said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if women subscribers to the times aren’t looking quite closely.”

She added that the Times reporters feel let down by how management engaged in this process and the “brutality” of Abramson’s firing.

“The most damning blow for the men and the women is that the Times leadership put out statements that just weren’t truthful,” Scarborough concluded. The New York Times lied trying to cover up their own mess.”

Watch the clip below via MSNBC:

[Image via screengrab]

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