(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Meet the newest member of the Los Angeles Times Editorial Board: Scott Jennings, the renowned conservative analyst and CNN pundit.
Jennings’s addition follows the LA Times owner, Dr. Pat Soon-Shiong, announcing plans to overhaul the declining newspaper’s direction by purging its leftist bias.
In an X post, Shiong wrote he is “growing the board with experts who have thoughtful balanced views” and added that “new candidates are accepting the challenge to join us.” He urged readers to “stay tuned” as “we are making this happen.”
Jennings thanked Shiong in a statement on X, saying he was “honored” by the opportunity
It’s true – I’ve accepted @DrPatSoonShiong invitation to join the editorial board of the @latimes. I’ve written columns for the paper over the last few years and was honored to do so under such a storied and important masthead. I love newspapers and believe in strong journalism… https://t.co/GrMa44T6en
— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) November 29, 2024
“I think Dr Soon-Shiong is doing something important and groundbreaking and am honored he asked me to play a role in that,” Jennings said.
“Roughly half (or more) of the country often feels like legacy media doesn’t care what it thinks and has little interest in fairly representing its views and values,” the CNN personality added.
He also announced his plans to represent Americans who feel “ignored or even ridiculed in legacy media.”
Jennings’s hiring follows Shiong’s decision to block the LA Times Editorial Board from endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy against that of Donald Trump.
The LA Times had religiously endorsed Democratic candidates since 2008. From 1976 to 2004, the newspaper refrained from issuing presidential endorsements, according to The American Presidency Project.
Shiong’s decision triggered the resignations of three Editorial Board members: Robert Greene, Karin Klein and Mariel Garza.
Shiong explained on Oct. 23, less than two weeks before the election, that the Editorial Board was ordered to provide a “factual analysis” of the positive and negative consequences of Trump’s and Harris’s proposals.
This approach sought to help readers make a nonpartisan determination about their vote. However, the board did not act on this plan.
“Instead of adopting this path as suggested, the Editorial Board chose to remain silent and I accepted their decision,” Shiong wrote on X.
So many comments about the @latimes Editorial Board not providing a Presidential endorsement this year. Let me clarify how this decision came about.
The Editorial Board was provided the opportunity to draft a factual analysis of all the POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE policies by EACH…
— Dr. Pat Soon-Shiong (@DrPatSoonShiong) October 23, 2024
