The owner of the Los Angeles Times has reportedly instructed the outlet’s editorial board to scale back its coverage of President-elect Donald Trump, according to a new report. Former CNN journalist Oliver Darcy obtained a memo from Times staff expressing concerns about owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong’s direct involvement in editorial decisions, particularly regarding the publication of articles critical of President-elect Donald Trump.
The memo, addressed to Executive Editor Terry Tang and signed by multiple members of the Opinion section, claims that Soon-Shiong directed the editorial board to “take a break from writing about” the president-elect. Staffers signed off on the memo because they viewed Soon-Shiong’s moves as “alarming actions” and noted their commitment to reporting “anything that might cast a shadow on the Times’ reputation,” according to the report, noted Fox News.
“We understand that Dr. Soon-Shiong has a role in shaping the tone and direction of the editorial board and Opinion section, but we are still bound by the core values and ethics of journalism, including a duty to be transparent and act in service of the public,” the memo read. It added, “We believe we have an obligation to report these under the ethics policy, which states that ‘the primary goal always should be to protect The Times’ integrity.’”
The memo also alleged that Soon-Shiong has “instituted a new policy that prohibits editorials containing criticism of the president-elect unless they are presented side-by-side with another opinion piece representing the ‘opposing view.’” The memo continued, “This new restriction, which appears to apply only to matters involving Trump and not to other officials or issues, has effectively killed or indefinitely delayed multiple editorials that have been written and edited but remain unpublished.”
The memo also claimed that the owner required the editorial board to submit the text of every editorial and the names of their authors before publication. “Editorial board positions and content have been preemptively censored before publication, and its arguments, headlines and topics subjected to boundaries that did not previously exist,” the memo noted.
The report adds to recent developments surrounding the Los Angeles Times owner’s stated mission to transform the paper into a “middle-of-the-road, trustworthy news source.” Soon-Shiong announced this goal in October, coinciding with the decision that the paper’s editorial board would not endorse a presidential candidate in the 2024 election. The decision sparked significant backlash, leading to the loss of over 20,000 subscribers. Additionally, several journalists and contributors resigned from the paper in protest.
Despite the backlash, the owner continues to advocate for a non-partisan Times. Last month, he announced that the paper would be forming a new Editorial Board with diverse voices, including conservative CNN political commentator Scott Jennings. “Trust in media is critical for a strong democracy,” he wrote on X while touting his ambitions for a new board.
Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.