The owner of the Los Angeles Times reportedly blocked the paper from endorsing a candidate in the 2024 presidential election.
According to a report from Semafor, the paper’s editorial board was preparing to endorse a presidential candidate. The paper has endorsed Democrats in every presidential election since then-Sen. Barack Obama’s race to the White House in 2008.
Two sources who spoke to Semafor said that executive editor Terry Tang told editorial board staff that the paper would not be endorsing a presidential candidate in the election cycle this year. Other endorsements can be found on the paper’s website.
This decision reportedly came from the paper’s owner, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong (via Semafor):
The paper did not explain its decision, though it noted at the bottom of its online endorsement page that “the editorial board endorses selectively, choosing the most consequential races in which to make recommendations.”
An LA Times spokesperson told Semafor, “We do not comment on internal discussions or decisions about editorials or endorsements.”
The LA Times has endorsed every Democrat for President since 2008.
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 22, 2024
They endorsed Kamala for Attorney General, Senate, and the Biden/Harris ticket in 2020.
But they will not be endorsing Kamala in 2024. pic.twitter.com/emjfplq9h7
Reportedly, the Times declined to endorse candidates in presidential elections from the mid-1970s up until 2008. Prior to this, the Times tended to endorse Republican candidates.
Predictably, other left-wing publications, like Vogue, The New Yorker, and several others have endorsed Harris.