Washington Times

Mondo Times editors    Boulder Colorado USA

Posted at 7:19am on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

Former Washington Times Editorial Page Editor Files EEOC Complaint, Claims Unification Church Coerced Him, the Washington Post reported on November 18, 2009:

"Richard Miniter, who was also vice president of opinion, has filed a discrimination complaint against the paper, saying he was "coerced" into attending a Unification Church religious ceremony that culminated in a mass wedding conducted by the church's leader, the Rev. Sun Myung Moon

He said in an interview that he "was made to feel there was no choice" but to attend the ceremony if he wanted to keep his job, and that executives "gave me examples of people whose careers at the Times had grown after they converted" to the Unification Church.

A Times spokesman said the paper would not comment."

The full story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/17/AR2009111703325.html

Mondo Times editors    Boulder Colorado USA

Posted at 11:37am on Saturday, November 14th, 2009

Washington Times Hires Armed Guards To Protect Management In Wake Of Staff Shakeup

Talking Points Memo reported on November 10, 2009:

"Recently, when three executives were fired, armed guards were brought up to the third floor where management works, according to three newsroom sources.

Newsroom sources tell TPM that employees have been told the third floor is "closed."

Employees at first couldn't use the elevators for the three-story building. An additional guard has been spotted in the lobby, standing next to the regular security guard who is there during business hours. Sources aren't sure whether the guard remaining on site today is armed.

The building in northeast Washington D.C. has always had private security in the lobby, but the extra security is a new development.

Today, the corridor on the third floor is also blocked off with an additional security guard."

The full story:
http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/newsroom-source-armed-guards-on-managements-floor-at-wash-times.php

Mondo Times editors    Boulder Colorado USA

Posted at 10:36am on Friday, November 13th, 2009

Washington Times Editor Resigns On Heels Of Publisher's Ouster

The Washington Post reported on November 13, 2009:

"Editor John Solomon, who made a mission of boosting the newspaper's fairness while trying to expand its reach, concluded that he could no longer be effective after a shakeup that ousted the Times' publisher.

The paper's managing editors, Jeffrey Birnbaum and David Jones, addressed the newsroom after the one-sentence announcement, with Birnbaum saying the resignation was "disappointing" and a "loss" but that Solomon was just part of a strategic vision that had brought the news organization a great distance.

Birnbaum also dismissed as baseless speculative reports that the owners, who are affiliated with the Unification Church, are considering shuttering the print edition."

The full story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/12/AR2009111210762.html

Mondo Times editors    Boulder Colorado USA

Posted at 3:32pm on Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Three Top Executives Ousted at Rev. Moon's Washington Times

The Washington Post reported on November 10, 2009:

"Washington Times president and publisher Thomas P. McDevitt, chief financial officer Keith Cooperrider and chairman Dong Moon Joo were "relieved of their duties," according to a statement from the newspaper. Former Times vice chairman Jonathan Slevin was named acting president and publisher. The other positions have yet to be filled.

"Our assessment team looks forward to emerging with a market-based plan that supports the sustainability of The Washington Times and advances the Times' role as an important source of news and opinion for readers who value a diversity of information and analysis," Slevin said in the statement.

Economics appears to be at the heart of the shakeup. The Times, established in 1982 by Unification Church founder the Rev. Sun Myung Moon as a politically conservative voice in the nation's capital, has always been subsidized by the church.

At the paper's 20th anniversary, it was estimated by industry experts that Moon had put more than $1.7 billion into the Times. As such, the Times was largely shielded from long-term declines in readership and advertising that have hammered almost every other newspaper.

But the recession has proved so great as to apparently have touched even the Times."

The full story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/09/AR2009110902529.html