New York Times cuts ties with editor conservatives criticized over Biden tweet

The New York Times has cut ties with an editor days after several conservatives criticized her over a tweet in which she said President Biden’s plane landing ahead of his inauguration gave her “chills.”

Freelance editor Lauren Wolfe labeled her departure from the newspaper as a “firing,” according to The Washington Post, days after she tweeted last Tuesday a photo of the plane with the text “Biden landing at Joint Base Andrews now. I have chills.”

Wolfe’s tweet received backlash from some conservatives who alleged it showed her displaying bias in favor of Biden. 

Her exit from the Times was first reported by journalist Yashar Ali, who cited two unnamed sources saying Wolfe “had her contract canceled” by the newspaper. Several in the media, including Jeremy Scahill and USA Today’s Kirsten Powers, slammed the Times for ending its working relationship with Wolfe.

1. Some news…

Lauren Wolfe, who was an editor on contract for the NYT, has had her contract canceled after she tweeted what’s on the left.

Wolfe also tweeted what’s on the right, but deleted when she learned Biden chose to take his own plane.

Per two sources. pic.twitter.com/uaB0INZ1q8

— Yashar Ali (@yashar) January 22, 2021

But a spokesperson for the Times said in a statement that the newspaper did not end anyone’s employment “over a single tweet.”

“There’s a lot of inaccurate information circulating on Twitter,” Danielle Rhoades Ha told The Hill. “For privacy reasons we don’t get into the details of personnel matters but we can say that we didn’t end someone’s employment over a single tweet. Out of respect for the individuals involved we don’t plan to comment further.”

The Times added that Wolfe was not a full-time employee and did not have a contract. 

The Times workers’ union released a statement on Sunday saying it has reached out to offer support and representation while it is “investigating the situation.”

“The New York Times management decision to terminate the employment of Lauren Wolfe was done outside of the just cause protections of our contract due to her classification as a casual employee,” the Times Guild said in its statement.

“We believe all our members deserve due process and just cause protections, the very rights that are fundamental to independent, objective journalism,” it added.

TimesGuild statement on Lauren Wolfe: pic.twitter.com/x555qHnAcq

— NYTimesGuild (@NYTimesGuild) January 24, 2021

On Saturday, Wolfe tweeted that it was “hard to fathom all the talk of ‘cancel culture’ on my timeline while I’m left without an income during a pandemic.”

“I’m not an ideology, I’m a hard-working person who can no longer pay her bills,” she said.

Hard to fathom all the talk of “cancel culture” on my timeline while I’m left without an income during a pandemic. I’m not an ideology, I’m a hard-working person who can no longer pay her bills. @SulomeAnderson @yashar @michaeldweiss

— Lauren Wolfe (@Wolfe321) January 23, 2021

But she did not back her supporters’ calls to unsubscribe to the Times, tweeting, “I have loved this paper and its mission my whole life. Their journalism is some of the most important & best in the world, & they need to be read widely.”

Hi all. I truly appreciate everyone’s support but I need to ask you a favor: PLEASE don’t unsubscribe from @nytimes. I have loved this paper and its mission my whole life. Their journalism is some of the most important & best in the world, & they need to be read widely. Thank you

— Lauren Wolfe (@Wolfe321) January 24, 2021