Also spurring the move: The paper watched for years as public radio and TV shows borrowed New York Times reporters for commentary, when we had them in the newsroom that whole time, says Barbaro. Folkenflik said he and at least three others were pressed privately by Barbaro to "temper their critiques" of the Caliphate controversy. Mr. Dolnick expressed regret over Mr. Millss stint as a Daily guest host. Weiss, who joined the Times in 2017,said the paper of record was among the media institutions now betraying their standards and losing sight of their principles as she accused them of only publishing stories that 'satisfy the narrowest of audiences'. The Times later issued a retraction for most of the podcast series. There is also still some dispute over whether he even traveled to Syria. In his new. It stands in opposition to the actions we have taken to ensure that our organizations have pathways for advancement for ALL employees, not just those of a privileged class. Yet the scandal over the editorial errors made in the creation of the series also resulted in the resurfacing of allegations of harassment made against Mills during his time working at WNYC. 'This was a moment for transparency, that moment is now lost, and there should be accountability for this lapse in judgment.'. Chaudhry's remarkable, yet untrue, story of being a fighter and executioner with the Islamic State in Syria had been the centerpiece of the award-winning 'Caliphate', for which reporter Callimachi was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, and won a Peabody Award. Wemple said the Times should not have assigned Barbaro to interview Baquet, given how close he is to Caliphate. You also referenced allegations of Andy Mills misconduct, which we take very seriously. Frances Mulraney For Dailymail.com, Reading triple murderer should not get life in jail because he only had 'fleeting interest' in Islamist extremism, judge hears as victims' families describe 'unbearable loss', Pictured: Osama bin Laden's spin doctor gets into a Mercedes outside his 1million council home in London's Maida Vale after being granted early release from US prison because being 'too fat made him a Covid risk', Isabel Oakeshott receives 'menacing' message from Matt Hancock, Ken Bruce: 'I always wanted to be a radio presenter from about 15', Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' Michael Barbaro, the host of The Daily., The Public Radio Program Directors Association. And they did not blame us. Michael Barbaro, host of the New York Times podcast The Daily, tried to pressure multiple journalists to temper their criticism of the paper's handling of the (mostly) retracted Caliphate. [5] A summary of headlines concludes the podcast. However, red flags surrounding the series' veracity were never far away. Yet in hosting the episode, Barbaro failed to disclose that much of the production team involved in 'Caliphate' had come from 'The Daily' - and that he is engaged to the series' executive producer Lisa Tobin. We believe weve handled what was a significant journalistic lapse with accountability,wrote Assistant Managing Editor Sam Dolnick, who oversees the papers audio offerings, in a letter to a group of radio stations that had cited concerns with the Timess actions. 'The times are changing and yet based on this decision, it appears that The Times is not changing along with them,' it claimed. There is also still some dispute over whether he even traveled to Syria. In addition to Barbaro, the letter from station officials took issue with the continued presence of producer Andy Mills, a creator and costar of Caliphate whose behavior has come under sustained critique. We are deeply committed to continuing to pursue ambitious audio journalism and have already begun implementing changes that will make our audio report even stronger.. Caliphate was seen as a new installation. Besides, Michael took paternity leave on and off from The Daily for much of 2021. Staff more than anything. The show delves into a single news topic each day, with Barbaro interviewing different Times reporters. Yet more than 800 staff members signed a letter protesting its publication. 7:25 A.M., Michael exits the subway into Times Square and takes a deep breath of Manhattan air, a rotation of scents including: Nuts4Nuts, vape pens, classic cigarettes, sewage, bus exhaust, and Davidoff cologne. The letter had also raised concerns over the presence of Mills, highlighting that several women had come forward during his time at WNYC. Led by star terrorism reporter and host Rukmini Callimachi, the Caliphate team made Canadian-Pakistani Shehroze Chaudhry into its key character, despite signs he could be lying about his claimed role as an ISIS executioner. It represents a new source of subscribers, revenues and awards, helping The Times build on its lucrative digital subscription model. '. Even though Callimachi was reassigned, Mills was allowed to host The Daily just a few days after the Caliphate retraction an event that prompted condemnations from peers in the audio sector. Mills' resignation was also confirmed in a memoto staff from the paper's executive editor, Dean Baquet, and managing editor, Joe Kahn, yet they did not go into details about his decision to leave. He said that after being cautioned for his conduct in WNYC, when he joined the Times in 2016, he 'was open with my bosses and colleagues about this experience and what I'd learned from it'. Where the feedback is coming from in most cases is within our own industry staff, board, donors, Ms. Goldstein said. The Daily, which the Times started in 2017, became a bona fide podcasting hit. Nearly a month after The New York Times announced that the 2018 podcast Caliphate did not meet its journalistic standards, a public radio association has accused The Times of committing ethical lapses in its efforts to make amends. The Canadian federal charges forced The Times to confront long-simmering doubts about the series. 'Eight years ago, during a team meeting, I gave a colleague a back rub. Resolved: Release in which this issue/RFE has been resolved. 'Several people have even alleged that I am a predator and a dangerous threat to my colleagues,' he wrote. Chaudhry had claimed he traveled to Syria in 2016 to join the terrorist group ISIS and committed acts of terrorism, including two killings. June 7:New York Times' opinion editor, James Bennet, resignedfollowing a controversial op-ed from Senator Tom Cotton. In a devastating internal review released, it was found that the paper had failed to corroborate the sensationalist claims made by Chaudhry and that the podcast team was duped by his fake story of working as an ISIS executioner. Michael Barbaro Bio & Family In early 2018, the Times reached an agreement with American Public Media (APM) to distribute The Daily to public-radio stations around the country. Mr. Dolnick wrote that Mr. Barbaro deeply regrets having sent private messages to journalists who covered the Caliphate correction, adding that Times editors have discussed their expectations with him going forward., Mr. Dolnick defended The Timess decision not to disclose Mr. Barbaros relationship with Ms. Tobin as part of the interview with Mr. Baquet. LEGAL INNOVATION | Tu Agente Digitalizador; LEGAL3 | Gestin Definitiva de Despachos; LEGAL GOV | Gestin Avanzada Sector Pblico As noted by this blog on Friday, Mills jumped to the Times from WNYCs Radiolab, where he triggered complaints for mistreatment of female colleagues. On May 7, 2021, Michael reported on The Daily that he and his wife Lisa Tobin had welcomed a baby named Tobin Barbaro. A New York profile on Barbaro from January 2020 reported that Barbaro and Tobin bought an apartment together in Brooklyn in 2019 and were engaged. Canadian officials say he never did, nor did he ever join the Islamic State, although American intelligence officials still have some doubt, the newspaper said. Canadian authorities charged the man with a terrorism hoax, 'New York Times' Retracts Core Of Hit Podcast Series 'Caliphate' On ISIS, accused of inappropriate physical contact and behavior. In her lengthy resignation letter addressed to publisherA.G. Sulzberger, Weiss claimed that intellectual curiosity and risk-taking was now a 'liability' at the Times. 'We all want and need a culture in which any of us feels comfortable coming forward with complaints or concerns and can trust they will be examined fully and fairly. "[7] It had 3.8 million individual listeners by August 2017,[16] and was regularly in the top ten most-listened podcasts by autumn 2017. With that understanding, we did not see a need to make reference to Michaels relationship with Lisa Tobin.. In a response seen by the Washington Post, on Tuesday morning the Times said that Barbaro 'deeply regrets' placing pressure on reporters from other publications to control the spin on Caliphate's grievous editorial errors. September:Trump repeatedly criticized the New York Times 1619 Project claiming it seeks to'change our history'. A stranger stepped up, and now theyre friends for life.. The Daily reaches more than 2 million listeners weekly as a program on public radio stations each week, according to American Public Media, its distributor. The scandal has led to intense backlash for the paper of record, especially from other news organizations, which have accused it of allowing for fearmongering regarding the radicalization of Muslims. Stations feel we have a big responsibility to staff., Public Radio Group Criticizes New York Times Over Caliphate Correction, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/12/business/public-radio-group-criticizes-new-york-times-over-caliphate-correction.html. 'It seems, however, that the optics of this decision may not have been carefully considered. Accounts of his conduct were described in a 2018 article in New York Magazines The Cut about workplace problems at the New York public radio station WNYC, where Mr. Mills previously worked. A New York Times journalist at the center of sexual harassment claims has resigned, while protesting that his previous mistakes were being inaccurately used to transform him 'into a symbol of larger societal evils'. The review began after Chaudhry was arrested by Canadian authorities in September and charged with 'a hoax regarding terrorist activity' as his lies fell apart. He had been a co-creator and co-star the series, acting as sidekick to main 'Caliphate' host Rukmini Callimachi. September:Trump repeatedly criticized the New York Times 1619 Project claiming it seeks to'change our history'. Radio stations in Anchorage, Atlanta, Austin, Dallas and Minneapolis had also signed onto the letter. 'At some point, maybe I'll tell this story more fully, but I got into this work to tell other people's stories. 'I think this guy, we now believe, was a con artist, who made up most if not all that he told us.'. Now he's the face and voice of what has become a. It just makes sense that Michael Barbaro and The Daily would come to public radio, an APM executive told Current at the time. Its weekday episodes are based on the Times reporting of the day, with interviews of journalists from The New York Times. ", Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. Editors have discussed their expectations with him going forward.. After the correction, Mr. Baquet said Ms. Callimachi had been removed from covering terrorism and international conflicts, a prestigious beat in which she had won a number of journalism awards over more than a decade. Political correspondent-turned-podcast star Barbaro married fellow Yale . The Times launched an investigation of its own reporting when it emerged that one of the Caliphate's central figures had lied about his supposed role as an Islamic State fighter and executioner in Syria. 'We know this is a difficult stretch for our audio team,' they stated. A letter signed by executives at 26 stations carrying The Daily accuses The Times of ethical lapses. The timing of that episode was a mistake and sent an unintended signal that undermined the gravity of the Caliphate Editors Note, he wrote. With more than 1,700 journalists, the New York Times is a colossus. Tobin, who joined The Times in 2016 from WBUR, and is engaged to Barbaro, said about 20 to 25 people work on "The Daily" and each episode "is likely to have had six or seven different sets of. Photo Credit: Joe Swift/MileSplit. Yet it argued that it did not think that Barbaro was required to disclose his relationship with Tobin during the retraction episode as it was 'an audio version of our editors' note, not an accountability interview'. According to NPR, Barbaro also pressured at least five journalists via social media to play down the errors in Caliphate and to get them to pull back their public criticism of the series. A group of 20 influential public radio stations has condemned the New York Times for a 'lack of transparency' after personal ties between the star host of 'The Daily' Michael Barbaro and its discredited series 'Caliphate' emerged. He went by the name Abu Huzayfah in the podcast and described in harrowing detail his role in executions. Ambitions for podcasts at The Times have grown since the success of The Daily, which runs on more than 200 public radio stations nationwide. [13], The success of the podcast led to a weekly documentary series The Weekly on FX, with its first episode airing on June 2, 2019. The Times said the two-month review had concluded that the 12-part podcast featuring award-winning correspondent Callimachi, who has frequently reported on IS, 'gave too much credence to the false or exaggerated accounts' of Chaudhry. Last December, the Times admitted to 'an institutional failure' in the production of its podcast 'Caliphate' by giving 'too much credence' to the story of a man now revealed as a fantasist pretending to be a terrorist. [7] The New Yorker attributed this success, in part, to the podcast's "conversational and intimate" tone, which made news more accessible, and to Barbaro's "idiosyncratic intonation" (he is known to say "hmm" after interesting commentary from guests, a habit that has generated much online commentary from listeners[17]). [6] The Times said it intended to build a news podcast franchise around it, beginning with a spin-off podcast, The New Washington, in summer 2017. [10], In March 2022, Barbaro was joined by the second host Sabrina Tavernise, following her guest hosting and reports including the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In the note, The Times said it had given too much credence to the false or exaggerated account of one of the podcasts main subjects, Shehroze Chaudhry, a Canadian who claimed to have taken part in Islamic State atrocities. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. While Callimachi has been reassigned within the Times, the letter questioned why Mills was being given 'greater visibility'. Revisionist history,' Trump claimed. "How are we to trust that difficult questions would be asked, answers would be demanded, and the truth be sought?" The New York Times admits mistakes in handling the demise of Caliphate, Sign up for a weekly roundup of thought-provoking ideas and debates, His bank card was declined. shocks NBA fans as she jumps on the court to congratulate New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson, 26, on beating the Brooklyn Nets According to NPR, Barbaro also pressured at least five journalists via social media to play down the errors in Caliphate and to get them to pull back their public criticism of the series. 'I have been transformed into a symbol of larger societal evils. At the time, show leadership initiated a response from WNYC to address Andys behavior, but it didnt happen fast enough and it didnt do enough., The public radio associations letter described Mr. Mills as someone with a history in public radio. In his reply, Mr. Dolnick wrote: You also referenced allegations of Andy Millss misconduct, which we take very seriously. Revisionist history,' Trump claimed. Seven years ago, I poured a drink on a coworker's head at a drunken bar party. The article included claims from women he worked with that said he asked them for dates, gave unsolicited back rubs and poured beer on the head of one woman in a bar. Mills admitted that he previously 'made mistakes that I wish I could take back' while attending meetups during his tenure at WNYC where he 'looked for love' and 'earned a reputation as a flirt.'. While Callimachi has been reassigned within the Times, the letter questioned why Mills, at the time, was being given 'greater visibility'. Sam Dolnick, an assistant managing editor of The Times who oversees the audio team, replied to the association on Tuesday in a letter made available by a Times spokeswoman. 'How are we to trust that difficult questions would be asked, answers would be demanded, and the truth be sought,' the station executives asked. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. Yet the backlash continued even further as the Times treatment of the staff involved in the podcast was called into question, and as the actions of some of the journalists themselves were also criticized. They both report to the same boss, . "This was a moment for transparency, that moment is now lost, and there should be accountability for this lapse in judgment.". In one tweet, he replied to a post by Wemple saying: "Several episodes of the series do not touch on Chaudhry and their accuracy is not in question.". "An Appreciation of Michael Barbaro and "The Daily", "Michael Barbaro and 'The Daily' Podcast Team on Launching 'The Weekly' FX Series, Working With a Romantic Partner", "New York Times' breakthrough 'The Daily' soars past 100M download mark", "A regular New York Times kids' section and a kids' version of The Daily are on the way this month", "Subscribe to a Newsletter From 'The Daily', "Sabrina Tavernise Joins 'The Daily' as a Host", "Bonus Episode: The Daily from The New York Times", "With 'The Weekly,' The New York Times Gets Serious About TV", "New York Times' 'The Daily' podcast headed to public radio", "Michael Barbaro explains why The Daily podcast doesn't cover Donald Trump's tweets", "What makes The Daily so unique? Barbaro had been a distinguished reporter for the Times as well as a savvy operator in its internal politics. 'I do this with no joy and a heavy heart,' he concluded. When The Daily launched in early 2017, most narrative podcasts ran 45-60 minutes. Investigators have now found that Chaudhry had passed along photos taken by others in Syria as his own. Abby Goldstein, the president and executive director of the Public Radio Program Directors Association, said she wrote the letter after station executives had contacted her with concerns. Others invoked more recent episodes. When a large project like Caliphate collapses, accordingly, it leaves behind a lot of awkward and painstaking management chores. Providing context, detail and press-corps conjecture, the podcast has been a huge success. Michael wrote in The Daily's newsletter on May 28, "My wife and I had a baby," confirming that he and Tobin had gotten married. An influential group of more than 20 public radio stations in major cities across the country are condemning the actions of The New York Times and its star host of the hit podcast The Daily,. Frances Mulraney For Dailymail.com The opening episodes of Caliphate ran as part of The Daily, with several staffers from podcast eventually joining the Caliphate team as it grew in popularity. The Daily is created by the Times but also reaches more than 2 million listeners weekly as a program on public radio stations. The Times announced last month that the series' host, former terrorism reporter Rukmini Callimachi, was being reassigned and acknowledged more quietly that some of her previous print reporting was found to be deficient as well. "Spending 20 minutes with Barbaro has become a necessary daily practice: like meditation, but with hair-raising. Michael Barbaro / Via Twitter: @mikiebarb. Recent episodes have covered Jeffrey Epsteins death, the election of Boris Johnson as U.K. prime minister and Indias crackdown in Kashmir. She says this mentality resulted in her being constantly bullied by coworkers who have called her a 'Nazi and a racist' because of her 'own forays into wrongthink'.