Here’s a Full Breakdown of the Ongoing Drama at the Washington Post
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The continuing drama at the Washington Post escalated Tuesday evening when reporter Felicia Sonmez announced she had been blocked by her colleague Jose Del Real.
Sonmez, and everyone else at the publication, had just been told to put a lid on the public bickering.
The Twittersphere has seen members of the paper’s staff snipe at one another since reporter Dave Weigel shared a joke that was widely viewed as sexist.
The retweet drew the ire of Sonmez.
Fantastic to work at a news outlet where retweets like this are allowed! pic.twitter.com/zs4dX4qprH
— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) June 3, 2022
He apologized and un-shared the offending post, but it was too late. He had unwittingly set off a chain of events that culminated in an apparent blow to the paper’s workplace culture.
Weigel was suspended for a month without pay. The move failed to quell tensions.
Before the suspension, Del Real asked Sonmez to cut Weigel a little slack – an idea she rejected. The two shared words online. Del Real accused her of bullying and clout-chasing.
Post executive editor Sally Buzbee got involved and asked everyone Tuesday to behave themselves in a private memo that naturally became public.
New: @SallyBuzbee sends stern memo to WaPo staff, reiterating newsroom’s values against “racist or sexist behavior” and saying that “we do not tolerate colleagues attacking colleagues either face to face or online.” pic.twitter.com/E2bpiFCCyS
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) June 7, 2022
A number of the paper’s reporters shared the now-public memo. One of them praised the culture inside the Post, and described her colleagues as “collegial.”
The Post is not perfect. No institution is. But I’m proud to work here. I love coming to work (almost) every single day, and knowing that my colleagues are collegial, collaborative and fun humans — not to mention talented journalists — who are always striving to do better. https://t.co/lbI8hqsFQ9
— Ashley Parker (@AshleyRParker) June 7, 2022
Buzbee’s memo was written in vain.
With the drama now in its fifth day, Sonmez announced she has been blocked by Del Real.
The blocking happened days ago, but Sonmez announced it while seemingly thumbing her nose at her employer’s directive.
So I hear The Washington Post is a collegial workplace. pic.twitter.com/RB0U3pz1vr
— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) June 8, 2022
Additionally, any notion Sonmez is chasing clout, being cruel, bullying or attempting to incite a mob are wrong, she said.
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! pic.twitter.com/uZpoGEyEGh
— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) June 8, 2022
As The Office showed America throughout its nine-season run, workplace dramas can be fun. But the Washington Post‘s ongoing spectacle has no redeeming qualities.
These are people who have a duty to “the public at large,” according to the Post‘s mission statement.
This week, some of them have become stars in a story so dark it feels as if democracy might die in it.
