Ellen Weiss
Ellen Weiss | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 30, 1959 |
| Alma mater | Smith College |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Spouse | David Saperstein |
Ellen Weiss (born January 30, 1959) was the vice-president of news for National Public Radio from 2007 through early 2011.[1] Weiss was named to that post in April 2007.
Before that, she was head of the NPR News National Desk[2] and Executive Producer of the NPR News magazine All Things Considered. She joined NPR in 1982.[3] She is a three-time Peabody Award winner.
She attended Scarsdale High School in Scarsdale, NY, and is a Smith College graduate. She currently resides in Washington DC with her husband, Rabbi David Saperstein and her two teenage sons.
Juan Williams Controversy
On January 6, 2011, Weiss agreed with NPR to resign from her position for her role in the October 2010 firing of political analyst Juan Williams for his comments on the Fox News program, The O'Reilly Factor. Discussing terrorism on the show, Williams said he gets "nervous" when he sees people in "Muslim garb" boarding a plane. Weiss personally called Williams to fire him on the basis of violating a provision in the NPR ethics guidelines against its staff expressing personal opinions.[4]
Following a review process on the incident, an e-mail statement from the NPR board of directors expressed "concerns regarding the speed and handling of the termination process" and said that led to "certain actions... with regard to management involved in Williams' contract termination." Concerning her consequent resignation, which ended her 28 year career at the radio network, Weiss called her decision "extremely hard" but defended her firing of Williams: "What I would say is that the decision to terminate the Juan Williams contract by NPR, of which I was a participant, was based on the highest journalistic standards."[4]
All Things Considered anchor Robert Siegel stated: "It doesn't surprise me that somebody was going to go, after the incredibly sloppy, messy and often embarrassing severance of Juan Williams. I don’t think Ellen’s leaving is a measure of her work over the years. It was this one, very poorly handled [move].[5]
For his part, Williams called Weiss' resignation "good news," describing her as the enforcer of "liberal orthodoxy" at NPR, as well as representing of a "a very ingrown, incestuous culture in that institution that's not open to different ways of thinking" [6]
References
- ^ "Appetite for info is good news for NPR". New York Daily News. September 29, 2008. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
- ^ Kennedy, George (2007). What good is journalism?: how reporters and editors are saving America's way of life. University of Missouri Press. p. 42. ISBN 9780826217301.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Ellen Weiss, NPR Biography
- ^ a b James Rainey (7 January 2011). "Top NPR official stepping down". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
- ^ "NPR V.P. Resigns, CEO Rebuked Over Williams' Firing". WGBH. 2011-01-07. Retrieved 2011-01-08.
- ^ http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704739504576068112729626724.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTSecond>
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