Ellen Weiss
Ellen Weiss | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 30, 1959 |
| Alma mater | Smith College |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Spouse | David Saperstein |
Ellen Weiss (born January 30, 1959) is a journalist and three-time Peabody Award winner. She joined National Public Radio (NPR) in 1982,[1] eventually running the NPR News national desk[2] and serving as executive producer of the NPR News magazine All Things Considered. She was named NPR vice president for news in April 2007 and held that post until January 2011.[3]
She attended Scarsdale High School in Scarsdale, NY, and is a Smith College graduate. She currently resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband, Rabbi David Saperstein. They have two teenage sons.
Juan Williams controversy
On January 6, 2011, Weiss agreed with NPR to resign from her position. Weiss made the decision in the October 2010 to fire 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; This was not the first time Williams had made a politically biased remark in a media format while crediting himself as an "NPR political analyst", something specific forbidden in his contract. [4]
Weiss personally called Williams to fire him immediately over the phone on the basis of violating a provision in the NPR ethics guidelines against its staff expressing personal opinions with being credited as an NPR employee. [5]
Although an independent review process concluded that "Williams' contract was terminated in accordance with its terms", 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."[5]
For his part, Williams accepted a $2m contract with Fox News.[6] [5][7][8]
References
- ^ Ellen Weiss, NPR Biography (broken link)
- ^ 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) - ^ "Appetite for info is good news for NPR". New York Daily News. September 29, 2008. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
- ^ Davidson, Amy. "NPR's Bad Divorce". The New Yorker. Retrieved 3/9/2011.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ a b c James Rainey (7 January 2011). "Top NPR official stepping down". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
- ^ http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpps/news/fox-news-gives-juan-williams-2m-deal-dpgonc-20101021-gc_10220312
- ^ http://www.foxnewsinsider.com/2011/01/06/juan-williams-on-weiss-resignation-its-good-to-get-the-flame-of-liberal-orthodoxy-out-of-npr/
- ^ "Saved by the Bell". The Hotline. 7 January 2011.
  | This United States biographical article related to radio is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |