Complaint Adds To Tumult At 'Washington Times'

**xinhui** · 22nd November 2009 04:54

Complaint Adds To Tumult At 'Washington Times'

by David Folkenflik

Complaint Adds To Tumult At 'Washington Times' : NPR

November 20, 2009
The Washington Times has long thought to be immune from the economic forces challenging the rest of newspaper industry because of the deep pockets of its founder and owner, the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, head of the Unification Church. But the recession has taken a toll on the paper and now an apparent power struggle among Moon's sons is adding to the paper's challenges.

ROBERT SIEGEL, host:
From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.
Tensions between the owners of newspapers and the journalists who run their newsrooms are nothing new.
At the Washington Times, though, tension has become tumult this month. Top executives have been fired, the executive editor resigned, and here's a twist: The Washington Times is owned by senior officials of the Unification Church, and a former editor is alleging that he was forced out because he mocked the church.
NPR's David Folkenflik reports.
DAVID FOLKENFLIK: There are a couple of things to know about the Washington Times. First, it was founded in 1982 as a distinctly conservative alternative to the Washington Post before Rush Limbaugh and before the Fox News Channel; and second, it was created by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, who accepted losses of tens of millions of dollars a year to influence political debate in the nation's capital. Jane Hall was a media reporter and critic for the Los Angeles Times and Fox News.
Professor JANE HALL (Media Scholar, American University): Everybody knows that Rupert Murdoch owns the New York Post. I don't think, ironically, that everybody knows that Reverend Moon has owned the Washington Times. It is considered somewhat of an oddity.
FOLKENFLIK: That is the same Reverend Moon who has proclaimed himself a messiah, called for a giant series of tunnels to connect the continents and who has officiated at mass marriages for decades, including at this event last winter.
(Soundbite of chanting and clapping)
FOLKENFLIK: On January 31st, Moon helped kick off a three-day festival in Midtown Manhattan. It was Moon's 90th birthday. It was captured on amateur tape. Moon pretended to fling icing from a towering cake and danced on stage with his wife.
Mr. RICHARD MINITER (Former Editorial Page Writer, Washington Times): I really didn't want to attend a religious service for a religion I wasn't participating in, and I wasn't covering it as a journalist.
FOLKENFLIK: That's Richard Miniter. An author and former editorial page writer for the Wall Street Journal. He was brought in late last year as a consultant to the Times to help bring the paper into the journalistic mainstream, but Miniter says the paper's then-publisher Thomas McDevitt pressured him into attending the event at the New Yorker hotel, which is owned by the church.
Mr. MINITER: And in the rear of that hotel is a large, 1920-style theater. You can imagine it showing black-and-white greats like "King Kong," but instead of "King Kong," at the center of the stage is Reverend Moon in long, flowing robes and a crown that, I guess, they purchased at some antique shop.
FOLKENFLIK: Miniter says he was badgers by Times executives when he ducked out for longer than 10 minutes to get a cup of coffee.
Mr. MINITER: I mean, think about the situation you're in, right? You're at this point a consultant. You're up for a job that you want, a real chance in journalism to remake a section of a national newspaper, and you have someone who's a true believer next to you. He was clearly happy and delighted to be there. Exactly how, in that situation, do you go about pointing out to someone who's essentially the authority over you, like, by the way, isn't this a bit nuts?
FOLKENFLIK: Miniter soon after became editorial page editor and a corporate vice president but says in June, he made the mistake of joking about the Unification Church to a co-worker. He says he was investigated, forced to work from home and ultimately fired. This week, Miniter filed a religious discrimination complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, though he cites other grounds, as well.
Acting Washington Times publisher Jonathan Slevin and other Times officials did not return calls seeking comment. In a statement published in yesterday's paper, Slevin said the Times would be cleared of Miniter's charges. News executives have always said church officials do not interfere in coverage, and several journalists who have worked for the Times say that's true in their experience. They would not be named for this story, saying they feared for their jobs. Instead, they said articles in the Times were more often tilted to reflect Moon's conservative political beliefs and especially his stances against communism and homosexuality.
Jane Hall, now a media scholar at American University, says that was starting to change.
Prof. HALL: The editor who came in last year was saying, and did say, that his mandate was to play it straight down the middle.
FOLKENFLIK: She's referring to John Solomon who was hired from the Washington Post last winter to become executive editor and to make the Times a multimedia power and strip its coverage of bias, but he resigned this month, amidst the firings of former publisher McDevitt and other top business executives.
Acting publisher Slevin said the Washington Times has to become financially self-supporting, and he promised it will continue to deliver an alternative voice for the nation's capital.
David Folkenflik, NPR News.

**JAD_333** · 22nd November 2009 06:12

It's not a bad paper. It fills in a lot of the gaps that the Post leaves open. No question it's conservative, but not rabidly so. The Moon connection has always cast a shadow over it. It's amazing, in a way, that so many top tier correspondents and editors have toiled there. One thing it had in its favor was enough bucks not to have to kiss up to advertisers. Looks like those days may be ending.

For my money, newspapers are about done as sources for breaking news. I still buy them (or cage one at Starbucks) to get the fuller story. One advantage to them is portability. With papers you can pause after a couple of columns, go back or continue when you want to. With TV & radio you have to watch/listen, and what you miss, you miss.

**xinhui** · 22nd November 2009 07:10

some my friends worked there and according to them have a somewhat "relaxed" editorial approach with the old timers. As long as you are a "noted" reporter, they generally don't care what you write.

**JAD_333** · 24th November 2009 02:55

Originally Posted by xinhui

some my friends worked there and according to them have a somewhat "relaxed" editorial approach with the old timers. As long as you are a "noted" reporter, they generally don't care what you write.

An editor is not likely to not care what a reporter writes, but on the other hand noted reporters can be counted on to write good stuff most of the time.

When it comes to commentators, they have a pretty free hand at all papers.

Your friends are probably right that the Wash Times is more hands off compared to most other papers.

**xinhui** · 4th January 2010 19:10

Originally published 05:45 a.m., January 4, 2010, updated 10:37 a.m., January 4, 2010

TWT fills top posts

Gabriella Boston

The Washington Times filled several top positions in the newsroom and on its business side over the weekend, as it introduced a two-section, local print edition that emphasizes the newspaper's historically strong coverage in the areas of political, national security, and investigative coverage, as well as opinion.

Award-winning investigative editor Jerry Seper will be appointing additional reporters, and best-selling author and longtime national security reporter Bill Gertz was named geopolitics editor.

Sol W. Sanders was selected as international business editor. Mr. Sanders is a veteran foreign correspondent and former editor at BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report and Global Affairs.

Robert Morton, formerly managing editor of The Times National Weekly, has been appointed associate publisher.

"A free society now requires the watchdog function of the media more than ever," said Jonathan Slevin, president and publisher of The Times. "The Washington Times is committed to that role as a serious trustee of the national interest through the caliber of its reporting, editorials and commentary."

Thomas Culligan, the newly appointed senior vice president of The Times, said the newspaper's focus is "also responding to what readers say they want."

"They come to The Times for deep news and commentary," said Mr. Culligan, who assumed his position after having been The Times' chief revenue and marketing officer.

"Readers all across the country are looking to us to provide sound information," Mr. Culligan said. "They want to know who's accountable."

Starting with this edition, The Times' local print edition will consist of an A section providing exclusive coverage from the nation's capital and a hard-hitting B section featuring opinion, editorials and cultural coverage.

Commentary will be expanded, and the second section will include daily book reviews and a two-page book review section on Fridays. The daily crossword puzzle, Sudoku and comics page will continue.

Mr. Gertz has written several best-selling books, and his intelligence and defense exclusives have made him well-known among top-level defense and intelligence officials in China, Russia and the United States. China's state-run Xinhua News Agency in 2006 identified him as the No. 1 "anti-China expert" in the world, though Mr. Gertz insists he is pro-China because he supports the Chinese people's efforts to have a democratic system there.

"The Times is known widely for its aggressive news reporting on national and international security affairs and I plan to uphold that tradition under our new formats," Mr. Gertz said.

Mr. Sanders has written several books on international business and security issues and served as deputy mission chief at the World Bank's Tokyo regional office.

According to Mr. Slevin, Mr. Morton's new job is broad and includes specific responsibilities for online editions. He has also been editor in chief of the New York City Tribune, and editor or publisher of an international news service, a quarterly journal on geopolitics, and subscription-based e-letters covering geostrategic issues. Joe Schaefer was promoted from assistant editor to managing editor of the National Weekly.

Karyn Gruenberg, marketing director for The Times, said market research indicates that "focused" publications fare better in a highly competitive media environment. "The paper remains a general-interest newspaper," Ms. Gruenberg added.

On the business and operations side of the company, Sonya Jenkins was promoted from vice president for human resources to vice president of administration.

Brian Bauman was promoted from senior director, public affairs and events, to general manager of The Washington Times Broadcast Division.

In another development, The Times is inviting more readers — particularly those who are in remote areas where delivery will cease — to get the successful National Weekly edition and/or The Washington Times electronic edition, or e-edition, which is an online subscription version of the print publication.

Monday's paper includes a notice on how readers can sign up for the e-edition, which will save the newspaper money and help the environment, Mr. Culligan said.

The daily print and e-editions will run five days a week, while Washington Times - Politics, Breaking News, US and World News will remain a 24/7 news Web site.

Other remaining products include "America's Morning News" radio program, currently in more than 70 markets, for three hours a day Monday through Friday, including locally during morning drive time from 6 to 9 a.m. on WTNT 570 AM, and "The Jeff Kuhner Show," aired locally on WTNT from noon to 3 p.m.

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