Owner says editorial board refused to provide side-by-side HarrisâTrump policy comparison; editor says she left after paper refused to endorse Harris.
The editor for the Los Angeles Times editorial section resigned on Wednesday after the newspaperâs owner requested the editorial board to present a side-by-side, factual, and nonpartisan analysis of both presidential candidates.
Editorials editor Mariel Garza told the Columbia Journalism Reviewâs Sewell Chan in an interview that she quit because the newspaper was remaining silent on the presidential race.
âI am resigning because I want to make it clear that I am not OK with us being silent,â Garza told Chan. âIn dangerous times, honest people need to stand up. This is how Iâm standing up.â
However, L.A. Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong clarified in a post on X that the editorial board was asked to provide a factual analysis of Vice President Kamala Harrisâs and former President Donald Trumpâs positive and negative policies and their effects during their time in office.
âInstead of adopting this path as suggested, the Editorial Board chose to remain silent and I accepted their decision.â
Garza told the Columbia Journalism Review that the board had planned to endorse Harris and that she had drafted an outline of the editorial, which was rejected.
The paperâs list of endorsements included candidates for the U.S. House and Senate, state Legislature, state attorney general, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Los Angeles Unified School District, Community College District, and Los Angeles City Council, along with endorsements for a number of propositions and measures.
In her resignation letter addressed to L.A. Times editor Terry Tang, Garza wrote, âIâm standing up by stepping down.â
She said that the ânon-endorsement undermines the integrity of the editorial board and every single endorsement we make, down to school board races.â
According to the Columbia Journalism Review, Soon-Shiong informed the editorial board on Oct. 11 that the paper would not be making a presidential endorsement this year.
Soon-Shiong purchased the newspaper in 2018.
In response to the news, the Trump campaign described the lack of endorsement as a blow for the Harris campaign, pointing out that the newspaper previously endorsed Harris during the 2014 race for California attorney general and in 2016 for U.S. Senate.
In 2010, the newspaper listed both candidates for state attorney generalâDemocratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republic candidate Steve Cooleyâon its endorsements page.
The Epoch Times reached out to Garza, Soon-Shiong, and the L.A. Times for comment but received no replies by publication time.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Original News Source Link – Epoch Times
Running For Office? Conservative Campaign Consulting – Election Day Strategies!