A Newsweek editor was reportedly demoted after a reporter for the magazine was fired for an inaccurate report on President Trump’s Thanksgiving plans.
On Saturday, the Washington Examiner reported that Newsweek reporter Jessica Kwong was fired for her Thursday article with the headline “How is Trump spending Thanksgiving? Tweeting, golfing and more,” before Trump’s surprise visit to Afghanistan was announced publicly. The article was edited hours after it was published, which included changing the headline to: “How is Trump spending Thanksgiving? Tweeting, golfing — and surprising U.S. troops in Afghanistan.”
Two hours after its Saturday report was published, the Washington Examiner updated its report with a statement from Kwong, who explained that “she sent a message to the editor on duty with the President’s latest actions and the editor published the piece.”
A Newsweek spokesperson confirmed the editor’s demotion in a statement sent to TPM. The Wrap was the first to report the demotion.
“Newsweek investigated the failures that led to the publication of the inaccurate report that President Trump spent Thanksgiving tweeting and golfing rather than visiting troops in Afghanistan,” the statement said, which repeated Newsweek’s statement on Saturday regarding Kwong’s firing. “The story has been corrected, the reporter responsible was terminated and the editor was demoted. We will continue to review our processes and, if required, take further action.”
The statement added that the article “did not meet the standards” set by Newsweek editor in chief Nancy Cooper.
“From the start of her tenure as editor in chief of Newsweek, Nancy Cooper has moved the newsroom toward strong reporting, such as the scoop on Baghdadi’s killing, and away from knee-jerk political snarkiness. This story did not meet the standards she has set,” the statement said.
