34 | JANUARY 5 • 2023 

NEXT DOR

B

ari Weiss, the for-
mer New York Times 
editor and writer, is 
quite busy these days. She is 
assisting in the publication of 
files uncovered at Twitter by 
its new owner that purport 
to tell how and why some 
discourse on the platform 
was suppressed or margin-
alized prior to Elon Musk’s 
$44 billion acquisition of the 
platform.
Musk’s prime motivation 
for buying Twitter was to 
restructure the social media 
platform to facilitate open 
and free expression — not 
just to the ideas and political 
opinions deemed acceptable 
by Twitter’s former manage-
ment and by mainstream 
media outlets. 
With Musk’s cooperation 
and blessing, Weiss and fel-
low independent journalist 
Matt Taibbi, formerly of 
Rolling Stone and others, are 
examining internal files and 
publishing their findings — 
not in the Times or Associated 
Press or some other widely 
followed news organization 
— but rather on Twitter and 
on Substack, a digital plat-
form designed and operated 
as an alternative to newspa-
pers and to news channels 

such as CNN and MSNBC.
Weiss’ latest foray is evoc-
ative of the events and con-
flicts that led to her resigna-
tion from the New York Times 
in July of 2021. As an ardent 
Zionist and strident oppo-
nent of antisemitism, Weiss, 
38, found herself the target 
of online harassment and 
intimidation by fellow Times 
journalists, some of whom 
called for her firing, along 
with labeling her a “Nazi,” a 
“fascist” and a “racist.” 
She brushed off snide com-
ments from coworkers that 
she was “writing about the 
Jews again.” In her telling, 
Times supervisors and man-
agers declined to support or 
defend her, creating a hostile 
work environment.
Her exit followed the 
high-profile resignation 
of James Bennet, her boss 
and editor of the New York 
Times editorial page, over 
publication of — and then 
apology for — a provocative 
column by Sen. Tom Cotton, 
a Republican, which had pro-
voked a storm of indignation 
and protests by Times staffers.
The polarization of polit-
ical opinion in the U.S. has 
been accompanied by a simi-
lar divisiveness within media 

and inside newsrooms, as 
old-line newspapers give 
way to social media and 
new digital platforms, the 
latter often specializing in 
reporting ideas and opinions 
that can’t find expression in 
mainstream, more progres-
sive outlets.
“Lessons about the impor-
tance of understanding other 
Americans, the necessity 
of resisting tribalism, and 
the centrality of the free 
exchange of ideas to a dem-
ocratic society — have not 
been learned,” she said in 
her resignation letter. At the 
Times, she said, “truth isn’t a 
process of collective discov-
ery, but an orthodoxy already 
known to an enlightened few 
whose job is to inform every-
one else.”
Weiss’ departure from the 
New York Times was followed 
by her debut on Substack 
with a column called 
“Common Sense,” recent-
ly changed to “Free Press.” 
She and collaborators also 
produce a podcast called 
“Honestly.”
In April 2019, Vanity Fair 
magazine published an 
admiring profile of Weiss, 
identifying her as a rising 
star in the media world. The 

author called Weiss’ columns 
and other writings “hetero-
dox, defying easy us/them, 
left/right categorization.” 
Besides issues related to 
Israel and Judaism, she also 
“focused on hot-button cul-
tural topics, such as #MeToo, 
the Women’s March and cam-
pus activism, approaching 
each topic with a confronta-
tional skepticism that until 
recently had a strong place 
within the liberal discourse.”
Though she identifies 
with social justice warriors 
on some issues, such as 
same-sex marriage, she also 
advocates for the importance 
of keeping an open mind, 
about the willingness to 
change opinions when new 
facts arise and — above all 
— avoiding the simplistic, 
dogmatic narratives that too 
often shape political and cul-
tural media coverage. (Weiss 
is married to former New 
York Times technology writer 
Nellie Bowles.)

FORGING A NEW PATH
Weiss’ departure from the 
Times might have looked to 
some like the curtailment 
of a once-promising career. 
Instead, she has carved out 
an impressive following of 

Former New York Times writer Bari 
Weiss moves to Substack to continue 
sharing the stories she cares about.

Alternative 
Journalism

DORON LEVIN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

VOICE OF A NEW GENERATION
Bari 
Weiss

SAMANTHA BLOOM

