Former NY Times Public Editor: Op-Ed Author Trying to Have It Both Ways
*By Conor White*
President Trump took his latest shot at the New York Times Friday, [calling on Attorney General Jeff Sessions](https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/07/politics/donald-trump-jeff-sessions-investigation/index.html) to investigate the publication and find out who wrote the anonymous op-ed that rocked the White House this week.
While the president has threatened to take action, legal experts haven't suggested the Times violated any laws in posting the piece, but the question of whether it *should* have remains.
"I think it was ethically fine," Margaret Sullivan, Washington Post media columnist and former Public Editor for the New York Times, said Friday in an interview on Cheddar. "I think they do run up against some issues if they also decide to have reporters reveal the identity."
In most newsrooms, the opinion and news sections operate as separate entities. But they may collide if the Times' own reporters begin to dig for answers, Sullivan said.
"This op-ed piece was published by the opinion section, the news section presumably is free to pursue the story, but whether that separation is really going to be honored and be understood is another question."
The paper should prepare for a legal battle, and the author should ready him or herself for the consequences, Sullivan said. After all, it seems Trump is arming himself for war.
"We're looking at it very strongly from a legal point," the president said to reporters before boarding Air Force One on Friday. "We're going to take a look at what he had, what he gave, what he's talking about, also where he is right now."
Trump has called the writer "gutless," and while Sullivan doesn't agree with that sentiment, she acknowledged that the anonymous nature of the piece is something of a detractor.
"If you're going to say something like this that's so negative and so detrimental, it would be much more important to put your name behind it," she said.
The Times only identified the writer as a "senior official". Many of President Trump's advisers, including Mike Pence, Steve Mnuchin, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Mike Pompeo, and Nikki Haley, have adamantly denied they are behind the piece.
But Sullivan doesn't think the author will be hidden for long.
"I don't think this is going to be a case like Watergate's Deep Throat, where the person, Mark Felt, was a secret for actually decades from almost everyone, I think we're going to know who this person is."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/should-the-new-york-times-have-published-trump-op-ed).
The House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 riots on Capitol Hill held its first primetime hearing on Thursday. Cheddar News speaks with legal analyst Tracy Pearson, who breaks down the biggest takeaways.
Fuel and oil prices have risen almost 17 percent since May, making the national gas prices reach nearly $5 a gallon. Andrew Lipow from consulting firm Lipow Oil Associates joined Cheddar News to discuss the future of gas prices. "The biggest issue on the oil market is really events that are beyond our control, which is what is happening over in Europe," he said, regarding the ongoing Russia Ukraine war. Lipow also said he predicted gas prices to hit $5.05 and that he's focused on the Biden administration's overtures in repairing a relationship with Saudi Arabia.
March For Our Lives will be returning this weekend to Washington, DC, in the wake of the recent mass shooting seen throughout the country. Marchers include Yolanda Renee King, the only granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr. She joined Cheddar News to discuss the importance of the march and activism in general. "I just think that it's so important to have these rallies because we need to demand to our leaders and politicians that they pass legislation and that and we actually need to see action," she said.
Erika Alexander and Whitney Dow, directors of 'The Big Payback,' join Cheddar News to discuss their new film, 'The Big Payback.' It premieres Saturday, June 11 at the Tribeca Festival.
President Biden proposed a new rule that would add 500,000 chargers for electric vehicles nationwide. The proposal comes amid the rapid shift to EVs with dozens of automakers announcing plans for all-electric fleets within the next decade. But with the new surge will the U.S. have the proper infrastructure to keep up? Scott Painter, founder and CEO of Autonomy.com joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss. "I really think the idea of standardization is a big deal. Standardization certainly makes it much better for everybody to be able to get a charge when they need one," he said.
The House select committee investigating the January 6th riots on Capitol Hill is opening its landmark series of public hearings. Cheddar News speaks with Mike Sozan, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress who explains how to follow the hearings and what to expect.
Claudia Rosenbaum, freelance reporter for Vanity Fair, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the race for Los Angeles mayor.
Rick Caruso, a billionaire real estate developer, forced a runoff with the longtime Democratic Rep. Karen Bass, who had been the favorite in the race until an ad blitz from Caruso leaning on the city's issues with crime and homelessness.
Survivors of Larry Nassar, including Olympian Simone Biles, are seeking $1 billion in damages from the FBI due to its failure to investigate the former gymnastics team doctor convicted of committing years of serial sexual abuse of minors. Jack Queen, a senior reporter at Law360, joined Cheddar News to break down the legal grounds of this case. "This is one of the biggest black eyes that the Bureau has faced in generations, quite frankly, and the FBI has taken full responsibility and admitted that it completely botched this investigation," he said. "So, there's a lot of pressure to settle."
