NY Times Demotes D-C Editor

Jonathan Weisman

The New York Times said Tuesday that it had demoted deputy Washington editor Jonathan Weisman after two controversial incidents on Twitter.

The Times said Weisman had apologized for what it called his "recent serious lapses in judgment."

It said he had been demoted and, quote, "will no longer be overseeing the team that covers Congress or be active on social media."

In one incident, Weisman suggested that Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota weren't really from the Midwest and Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas and civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis of Georgia weren't really from the Deep South, implying that urban areas with significant minority populations in the Midwest and Deep South aren’t representative of those regions.

In the other, Weisman tweeted that the progressive PAC Justice Democrats has backed a primary challenger in Ohio, quote, "seeking to unseat an African-American Democrat, Joyce Beatty."

The challenger, Morgan Harper, responded to him, "I am also black," and he said that he'd seen a photo with the endorsement.

When African-American author Roxane Gay tweeted, "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."

Weisman emailed Gay saying she owed him a, quote, "enormous apology," a message she posted online, and Gay also said he contacted her publisher.