A statement from the New York Times defending Taylor Lorenz following Tucker Carlson’s assaults. It’s been over a year since we published this.
This piece on a journalist’s harassment awareness tweet by Fox News host Megyn Kelly has been described as a deliberate and cruel ploy by a newspaper.
The New York Times stepped up to protect Taylor Lorenz from Tucker Carlson’s “calculated and nasty” assaults. After International Women’s Day, a Times tech writer was slammed on Carlson’s show for a tweet about online abuse.
“For International Women’s Day, please consider supporting women who are subjected to online harassment,” said Lorenz on Twitter. Over the past year, I’ve been subjected to a relentless campaign of harassment and smearing. I don’t think anyone should have to experience this.”
Carlson disregarded Lorenz’s experiences as “not true harassment” and labelled her a “privileged” internet culture reporter who had previously worked for the Hill.
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The Times issued the following statement on Wednesday in reaction to Carlson’s public criticisms on the second night:
For the second time in as many weeks, Tucker Carlson opened his show Wednesday night by criticizing an investigative reporter. An evil strategy he uses time and time again to inflict pain and anguish on his intended victim.
When it comes to the New York Times’ reporting, Taylor Lorenz has a lot of talent. In order for journalists to carry out their duties, they should not be subjected to harassment.”
“Journalists make their money trying to wreck your life, but if you utter a single thing about it, you’re a criminal, a moral monster,” Carlson said on his broadcast that night.
Fox News also issued a statement in support of Carlson’s position. Even journalists can be subject to reasonable criticism of their work, the statement noted.
While Lorenz has previously tweeted about Twitter abuse, she noted that the scope of the impact goes beyond “nasty comments.”
Carlson’s words have already had an impact on people’s perceptions. Lorenz’s Twitter account was bombarded with death threats overnight, with some people even emailing her to say they wanted to kill her. Kurt Schlichter, a conservative political journalist, joined in the fun by frequently tweeting “Taylor Lorenz.”
Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz Taylor Lorenz @TaylorLorenz
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) March 10, 2021
This tweet by Kurt Schlichter on March 10th, 2021, reads:
As though they’re saying, ‘They’re making you famous!'” It’s not a matter of gaining notoriety. In response, Lorenz stated, “They want their hordes of followers to know your name and hound you wherever you go. My name is repeated on his show for the same reason. They’re hammering it into the skulls of their supporters.”
Carlson cropped removed the blobfish profile icon connected with Lorenz’s Twitter account when he shared a screenshot of Lorenz’s tweet on his show, which Lorenz described as a strategy to rouse the soldiers against her.
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“I’m not arguing that my face doesn’t exist on the internet,” Lorenz remarked in a forum on Reddit. When people take screengrabs, I’m not claiming I intentionally have it on Twitter. Tucker’s decision to *photoshop my avatar* to incorporate my face is completely out of character. It takes time and effort to do something like this.”
According to Quartz Media reporter Karen Ho, this type of harassment toward female reporters is not uncommon. This is not a surprise: “I should not be surprised to see a prominent male journalist underestimate the gravity of harassment,” she tweeted. “Regardless of her notable employer, sexism is still a huge problem in 2021 even after International Women’s Day,” she continued.