NYT Public Editor Margaret Sullivan Headed To The Washington Post

Margaret Sullivan, the New York Times’ public editor, will join the staff at the Washington Post as a media columnist, the Post announced on Monday morning.

Liz Seymour, the Washington Post’s executive features editor, said that Sullivan will cover the media and write a weekly column, which Seymour said would be the “centerpiece” role for Sullivan at the Post.

“It will encompass everything related to digital media, and how that transformation is affecting people’s lives and work, along with journalism, news literacy, privacy and free speech, and media personalities,” Seymour wrote about Sullivan’s forthcoming column. “Margaret is a huge consumer of culture, especially pop music, literary fiction, theater, art, and movies, and will pull these elements into her column.”

Sullivan served at the New York Times’ public editor since 2012, where she offered criticism and analysis of the Times’ reporting. She was scheduled to work at the Times until August, and will remain in her position for several weeks, according to the New York Times’ announcement of her departure.

In a memo to staff, New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. wrote that Sillivan “ushered the position into a new age.”

“The role of public editor is not the easiest to hold here, or I suspect anywhere. The very nature of the job sometimes puts the person holding it in conflict with some of us, both in the newsroom and even in the executive ranks. Margaret could be tough, but in my view, she has always been fair,” he wrote in the memo. “She has lived up to the mission of the job, to represent readers and respond to their concerns and to hold this institution to our values. She has my deep appreciation and affection.”

Sulzberger said that the Times has begun its search for Sullivan’s replacement.