Purchase of “Boston Metro” Newspaper by New York Times is in Jeopardy over Charges of Racism
          The purchase of the “Boston Metro” newspaper by the New York Times is now in jeopardy after the revelation this week of racist remarks by the Metro’s managers.  Two of its top executives were forced to resign in recent days over racist remarks made at company meetings during the last year.  The forced resignations were apparently an effort to salvage the pending deal with the New York Times.
          The Times Company, which also owns the Boston Globe, has been receiving calls from black, civil rights leaders about why it would be considering purchasing a company that discriminates again black people.  The Times has been considering a $16.5 million deal to purchase 49% of the free daily paper.
          ``They're going to have to back out of this deal,'' the Rev. Jeffrey Brown yesterday, pastor of the Union Baptist Church in Cambridge has said. ``This isn't subtle stuff. This is the kind of stuff we'd expect in the Deep South 50 years ago. What does this say about the Globe? What does this say about the New York Times?''  
          Janis Pryor, a political consultant who has worked for Jesse Jackson has stated: ``This is alarming and very upsetting.  Shame on the Globe and the Times. It's time for them to walk their talk. …I think many black people will start to regard the Times and the Globe as limousine liberals who don't walk their talk.''
          The Times Company, under its Chairman Pinch Sulzberger, has been no stranger to controversy involving racism.  The Jayson Blair fiasco in 2003 left an indelible mark on the reputation of the Times, which Sulzberger was forced to fire his two top editors, both close friends. This scandal was spawned by hiring practices which promoted employees based on ethnic lines and skin color, rather than on performance.
          The Times has issued a public statement regarding the latest revelations about the Boston Metro.  It said: “We are closely reviewing the steps that Metro International is taking to address recent reports of inappropriate comments by some of its staff and the process it pursues to ensure that it adheres to the highest standards of corporate behavior.”
          The Times was silent, however, regarding Sulzberger’s involvement in the latest flap over racism at the Metro or whether to whether the Times may renege on the acquisition over the row.

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Libel by New York Times 
MassNews Archives:Jayson Blair and the NYT