NY Times Editor Demoted After ‘Recent Serious Lapses in Judgment’ on Social Media

New York Times deputy Washington editor Jonathan Weisman has been demoted for what the paper has called “serious lapses in judgment.”

Weisman recently came under serious criticism for a since-deleted tweet saying “Saying @RashidaTlaib (D-Detroit) and @IlhanMN (D-Minneapolis) are from the Midwest is like saying Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin) is from Texas or @repjohnlewis (D-Atlanta) is from the Deep South. C’mon.”

Following that, Weisman was blasted for this Twitter exchange, including by author Roxane Gay:

Justice Democrats has backed another primary challenger, this one seeking to unseat an African-American Democrat, Joyce Beatty, who represents Columbus. https://t.co/p662eaNxhc

— (((JonathanWeisman))) (@jonathanweisman) August 7, 2019

I am also black, @jonathanweisman. https://t.co/tiww26QvbR

— Morgan Harper (@mh4oh) August 7, 2019

@justicedems's endorsement included a photo.

— (((JonathanWeisman))) (@jonathanweisman) August 7, 2019

Any time you think you’re unqualified for a job remember that this guy, telling a black woman she isn’t black because he looked at a picture and can’t see, has one of the most prestigious jobs in America. Shoot your shot. pic.twitter.com/m2k8Drr5eH

— roxane gay (@rgay) August 7, 2019

Gay subsequently received an email from Weisman saying “I believe you owe me an enormous apology” and posted it to Twitter calling him out.

And now, per CNN, Weisman has been demoted:

“Jonathan Weisman met with [Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet] today and apologized for his recent serious lapses in judgment. As a consequence of his actions, he has been demoted and will no longer be overseeing the team that covers Congress or be active on social media. We don’t typically discuss personnel matters but we’re doing so in this instance with Jonathan’s knowledge,” a Times spokesperson said in a statement.

Times executive editor Dean Baquet confirmed to CNN that the Times staff meeting yesterday that touched on the recent flap over the “Trump Urges Unity vs Racism” headline also dealt with Weisman’s recent social media activity.