Athletic Journalists Organize at The New York Times, Seek Recognition as Part of Newsroom Union

Editorial staff at The Athletic announced Monday that they have organized with The NewsGuild of New York and are asking The New York Times to recognize them as part of the newsroom union, The Times Guild. The Athletic’s organizing committee sent an email on behalf of about 200 Athletic U.S.-based editorial staff to Times Publisher AG Sulzberger and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien, requesting that they recognize them as part of the Times Guild.

“We are proud of all that The Athletic and The New York Times as a whole has accomplished since our 2022 acquisition, and we know that our inclusion in the Times Guild will only further strengthen our work,” the letter says.

The Times acquired The Athletic, an online sports news outlet, in 2022. Despite management’s assertions that The Athletic’s operations would be separate, they have been integrated into the newsroom. On Sept. 18, 2023, Times management closed the award-winning New York Times Sports Desk and the work was shifted to Times staff assigned to The Athletic. Read more here!