See Jack Shafer’s slaughtering of Judy Miller for why.
NYT:
The New York Times and Judith Miller, a veteran reporter for the paper, reached an agreement today that ends her 28-year career at the newspaper and caps more than two weeks of negotiations.
Ms. Miller went to jail this summer rather than reveal a confidential source in the C.I.A. leak case. But her release from jail 85 days later after she agreed to testify before a grand jury and persistent questions about her actions roiled long-simmering concerns about her in the newsroom and led to her departure.
In a memo sent The Times staff at 3:30 p.m. today, Bill Keller, the executive editor, wrote, “In her 28 years at The Times, Judy participated in some great prize winning journalism.”
In a statement, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., publisher of The Times, said: “We are grateful to Judy for her significant personal sacrifice to defend an important journalistic principle,” adding, “I respect her decision to retire from The Times and wish her well.”
Ms. Miller could not be reached for comment.
Lawyers for Ms. Miller and the paper negotiated a severance package, the details of which they would not disclose. Under the agreement, Ms. Miller will retire from the newspaper, and The Times will print a letter she wrote to the editor explaining her position. Ms. Miller originally demanded that she be able to write an essay for the paper’s Op-Ed page challenging the allegations against her. The Times refused that demand – Gail Collins, editor of the editorial page, said, “We don’t use the Op-Ed page for back and forth between one part of the paper and another” – but agreed to let her write the letter.
