The Digital Upheaval Surrounding Jill Abramson's Exit From the Times

The single day that has passed since the New York Times announced that Jill Abramson would be replaced as executive editor of the paper by managing editor, Dean Baquet has been filled with speculation and controversy.  Almost immediately the internet was filled with rumors that she had been fired due to gender discrimination.  It has been claimed by multiple sources that she was being paid less than her predecessors and it has in fact been confirmed that she hired an attorney to inquire into the matter.  But as far as accusations that gendered bias against her management style (a style that might have been acceptable in a male editor), only time will tell what the truth was.  While I don't think anyone in this day and age can condone blatant discrimination, we've now reached a point in our growth where it has become difficult to tell a legitimate decision by a business from a biased one.  And while it may be tempting to wonder into the truth of the matter, I can't help but feel it would be more productive to create an environment where women who have suffered from discrimination can come forward and speak their minds without being judged.

For more information see:

Times Seeks to Reassure Its Staff After Abramson's Ouster

Newspapers Hooked Dean Baquet New Editor of the Times at an Early Age

Jill Abramson and the Times What Went Wrong

Did The NY Times Fire Jill Abramson for Being Pushy?

New York Times Announces Sudden Change in Executive Editor

It was announced just this afternoon that Jill Abramson, the executive editor for the New York Times, will be leaving her position.  Taking over in her stead will be Dean Baquet, the managing editor of the paper.  This is quite the historic change as Ms. Abramson was the first woman to fill this top job and now Mr. Baquet will be the first African American man to do so as well at the New York Times.

For more information see the New York Times article on the change released just minutes ago:

New York Times Replaces Abramson as Executive Editor

What Does it Mean to be a Critical Thinker?

This morning I stumbled upon a New York Times Opinion article which lamented the trend among American students to only focus on the "critical" part of critical thinking skills.  While I completely agree that the whole focus of a students education should not be a negative one, I also think it is a huge mistake to equate negative criticism with academic critique.  A true critique should be a neutral evaluation of what is going on in a text.  While this can include pointing to flaws, it really should be more about uncovering on a deeper level how and why a topic is presented in the way that it is.  I was never taught to think of critical thinking as an inherently negative process, but if this is the view of the majority of American, may be we do need a paradigm shift in how we present thinking skills to the children and adults of our nation.

Young Minds in Critical Condition

New York Times Bestsellers

THIS WEEK		LAST WEEK	HARDCOVER FICTION	WEEKS ON LIST
1		1	THE TARGET, by David Baldacci. (Grand Central.) As the government hit man Will Robie and his partner, Jessica Reel, prepare for a mission, they face a new adversary.	2
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2			NATCHEZ BURNING, by Greg Iles. (Morrow/HarperCollins.) Penn Cage, a former prosecutor in Natchez, Miss., delves into the secrets of his father, a doctor who has been accused of murdering an African-American nurse.	1
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3		2	THE GOLDFINCH, by Donna Tartt. (Little, Brown.)  A painting smuggled out of the Metropolitan Museum of Art after a bombing becomes a boy’s prize, guilt and burden.	28
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4		4	THE COLLECTOR, by Nora Roberts. (Putnam.) A writer travels the world of affluent art collectors to learn the truth about what appears to be a murder/suicide.	3
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5	*	3	CHESTNUT STREET, by Maeve Binchy. (Knopf.) Binchy, who died in 2012, depicts ordinary lives in Dublin.	2
				Buy
6		8	THE INVENTION OF WINGS, by Sue Monk Kidd. (Viking.) The relationship between a wealthy Charleston girl, Sarah Grimké, who will grow up to become a prominent abolitionist, and the slave she is given for her 11th birthday.	17
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7		7	I'VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN, by Mary Higgins Clark. (Simon & Schuster.) The producer of a true-crime show must contend with participants with secrets.	5
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8		5	THE SERPENT OF VENICE, by Christopher Moore. (Morrow/HarperCollins.) A farcical mash-up of “Merchant of Venice,”  “Othello” and “The Cask of Amontillado.”	2
				Buy
9	*	11	KEEP QUIET, by Lisa Scottoline. (St. Martin's.) A father hides a terrible secret to protect his son.	4
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10		9	NYPD RED 2, by James Patterson and Marshall Karp. (Little, Brown.) Detective Zach Jordan is called in when the body of a woman is discovered in the Central Park. New York Times Bestsellers top 10

New York Times Bestsellers

THIS WEEK		LAST WEEK	HARDCOVER FICTION	WEEKS ON LIST
1			12TH OF NEVER, by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. (Little, Brown.) One week after the birth of her baby, Detective Lindsay Boxer must return to work to investigate a string of grisly murders; a Women’s Murder Club novel.	1
				Buy
2		1	THE HIT, by David Baldacci. (Grand Central.) The government hitman Will Robie uncovers a serious threat as he attempts to take out a fellow assassin who has gone rogue.	2
				Buy
3		2	WHISKEY BEACH, by Nora Roberts. (Putnam.) A former criminal attorney who has been acquitted of his wife’s murder retreats to his family home on a New England cliff.	3
				Buy
4			BEST KEPT SECRET, by Jeffrey Archer. (St. Martin's.) In Volume 3 of the Clifton Chronicles, the focus shifts to a new generation — Sebastian, the son of Harry and Emma Clifton.	1
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5	*		NOS4A2, by Joe Hill. (Morrow/HarperCollins.) In a creepy battle between real and imaginary worlds, a brave biker chick is pitted against a ghoulish villain who lures children to a place where it is always Christmas.	1
				Buy
6		7	DADDY'S GONE A HUNTING, by Mary Higgins Clark. (Simon & Schuster.) Two sisters are threatened by a dark secret from their family's past.	4
				Buy
7	*	8	GONE GIRL, by Gillian Flynn. (Crown.) A woman disappears on her fifth anniversary; is her husband a killer?	48
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8		3	FLY AWAY, by Kristin Hannah. (St. Martin's.) A woman must deal with her personal issues before she can keep her promise to help the family of her deceased friend.	2
				Buy
9	*	5	LIFE AFTER LIFE, by Kate Atkinson. (Little, Brown.) A woman appears in different versions of the same events, centered on World War II.	5
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10		4	PARIS, by Edward Rutherfurd. (Doubleday.) Characters real and imaginary in the City of Light.	2
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11		9	THE BURGESS BOYS, by Elizabeth Strout. (Random House.) Two brothers, both lawyers, come together in a small Maine town to defend their troubled nephew.	6
				Buy
12			THE APPLE ORCHARD, by Susan Wiggs. (Harlequin Mira.) When a woman inherits half a hundred-acre apple orchard in Sonoma County to be shared with a half-sister she never knew she had, she discovers the pleasures of family and love.	1
				Buy
13	*	12	THE INTERESTINGS, by Meg Wolitzer. (Riverhead.) Six friends meet in the 1970s at a summer arts camp, and pursue success, and one another, over succeeding decades.	4
				Buy
14		14	A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, by George R. R. Martin. (Bantam.) Book 5 of "A Song of Ice and Fire."	71
			Books of The Times Review | Related Article	Buy
15		6	WEDDING NIGHT, by Sophie Kinsella. (Dial.) A woman tries to break up her sister’s impulsive marriage.	2
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16	*		SOMEDAY, SOMEDAY, MAYBE, by Lauren Graham. (Ballantine.) A young actress tries to make it in New York City, by a star of “Gilmore Girls” and “Parenthood.”	1