NYT Opinion Chief Recuses Himself as Brother Runs for President

(Bloomberg) -- New York Times Editorial Page Editor James Bennet has recused himself from coverage of the 2020 presidential election as his brother Michael enters the race.

Colorado Senator Michael Bennet said Thursday he’s running for the Democratic presidential nomination, offering himself as a centrist alternative in an expanding field of candidates.

James Bennet “will not discuss, assign or edit any editorials, Op-Eds, columns or other opinion pieces focused on candidates or major issues in the campaign,” the Times said.

The paper added that James had not been involved in editorial decisions related to his brother before to Thursday’s announcement. The deputy editorial page editors, Kathleen Kingsbury and James Dao, will take over political coverage as long as Michael’s campaign is active.

James Bennet became the Times’s editorial page editor in 2016. Prior to that, he was the president and editor in chief of the Atlantic.

Michael Bennet, a senator since 2009 and a former managing director of Denver’s Anschutz Investment Co., faces a tough challenge getting noticed in a crowd of candidates that includes former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

Bennet, 54, is the 21st Democrat and the seventh senator to enter the race to pick the party’s challenger to President Donald Trump in 2020. The senator’s entry into the contest was delayed while he underwent treatment for prostate cancer.

To contact the reporter on this story: Gerry Smith in New York at gsmith233@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, John J. Edwards III, Cecile Daurat

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