Would they have even published such a piece if a Democrat were in the White House? Via the AP:
EW YORK – It was an extraordinary decision at a tense time for editors at The New York Times: a senior official at the Trump administration wanted to tell the world that some who work for the president try to blunt his worst instincts, but wanted the cover of anonymity to avoid being fired.
The Times agreed and posted the column titled “I am part of the resistance inside the Trump Administration” on Wednesday, provoking fury from the man who frequently revs up supporters by railing against “fake news” and the “failing New York Times.” Trump called the move gutless and demanded the Times reveal the author’s identity “for national security purposes.”
The internet was abuzz with speculation on who wrote the column, which veered in tone between a hostage note and a reassurance to Americans that, as the writer put it, “there are adults in the room.”
The decision was in the purview of James Bennet, editorial page editor, and James Dao, op-ed editor, with publisher A.G. Sulzberger weighing in, a Times spokeswoman said. The newspaper’s executive editor, Dean Baquet, was not involved because the news pages are his responsibility, and the column appeared in the Times’ opinion section.
That led to a Times reporter, Jodi Kantor, tweeting that “Times reporters must now try to unearth the identity of an author that our colleagues in Opinion have sworn to protect with anonymity?”
Dao told a Times reporter that the piece was submitted last week through an intermediary, and anonymity wasn’t granted until editors were confident in the writer’s identity. While that’s rare for the opinion pages, it’s not unprecedented, and Dao said the material in the essay was important enough to publish.
“We believe publishing this essay anonymously is the only way to deliver an important perspective to our readers,” the newspaper said.