Former NYT editor Jill Abramson asserted in an interview with Fox News that "the idea that The New York Times is edited by a cabal of left-wing journalists is just not true", criticising the tone of a resignation letter by Bari Weiss, who stepped down from her position due to what the latter described as "bullying" and "left-wing bias" from fellow journalists at The Times.
"The idea that The New York Times is edited by a cabal of left-wing journalists is just not true at all. Most of the opinion columnists at the Times are centrists. They are center to liberal", Abramson said in the interview.
Social media users were not eager to trust her words, however, as many mocked her for "completely embarrassing herself" while insisting that the kind of bullying Weiss alleged in her letter must not be accepted.
Many netizens cast doubt over the number of centrist authors at Nytimes.com, asking Abramson to confirm her assertion.
Another remark by Abramson that enraged the twitterati was her suggestion that Weiss should have been ready for bullying, as her own Twitter page "throwing some punches" at people she disagreed with.
"Bari Weiss is someone [who] has thousands of Twitter followers herself. She has been in there, on Twitter, throwing some punches herself at people she disagrees with. I'm not saying she is a bully, but, you know, if you are going to dish it out, you've got to be ready to take it", Abramson stated.
Abramson, who was fired from The New York Times in 2014, rolled out her remarks after Weiss stepped down as opinion editor, slamming the paper in a letter for hotsing what she described as a "hostile work environment" and "bullying" over her conservative and centrist views and censorship of opinions that differ from a preferred narrative.