Owner of LA Times Announces Plans to Add More Conservatives to Editorial Board

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The owner of the Los Angeles Times has announced plans to reshape the paper’s editorial direction by integrating more conservative voices despite its traditionally left-leaning perspective.

What’s the deal: In an interview with Fox News, LA Times owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong stressed the need for greater balance and diversity in the paper’s editorial perspective. He said, “We need views from both sides, and my goal is not to change that entire editorial board for that perspective. If it’s news, it should just be the facts, period. And if it’s an opinion, that’s maybe an opinion of the news.”

Soon-Shiong added, “It is our responsibility to maintain democracy, to have the views of all our California readers, in fact, the views of all the national readers to be aired.” He also admitted the challenges of this shift, noting, “It’s going to be risky and difficult. I’m going to take a lot of heat, which I already am but you know, I come from the position that really it’s important for all voices to be heard.”

Not the only one: In addition to the LA Times, the Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is reportedly making efforts to “balance out” its editorial board. This follows Bezos’s decision to block the Post from endorsing a candidate in the 2024 election, a move that angered many of the paper’s subscribers and senior staff.

This all comes as the news industry is experiencing a significant decline in viewership as audiences increasingly turn to digital platforms for information. For instance, between 2020 and 2022, morning news viewership decreased by 11% for NBC, 9% for ABC, and 8% for CBS. In addition, social media has become a prominent news source for many. As of 2024, about one-third of US adults regularly get news on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.