Bland Ambition: What the Joe Kahn Choice Says About the New York Times
PoliticoHow in this entrepreneurial age — a moment of radical disruption in the news business — did the Times settle on such a profoundly traditional choice? Kahn will replace Dean Baquet, himself a steady figure but one whose polished presence and status as a racial pioneer—the first African American to lead the Times newsroom — made him a celebrity in news circles. In recent years, the Wall Street Journal’s top editing job switched from Gerard Baker — an outspoken Brit who regularly generated controversial and sometimes publication-bruising publicity—to Matt Murray, a soft-spoken and affable American. Joe Kahn has followed a career path altogether different than, say, Ben Smith, who recently announced his departure as the Times’ media columnist to lead a new startup designed to compete with the publication for a global audience. As I reflected recently on POLITICO’s 15th anniversary, my belief is that the future of media depends on merging entrepreneurial restlessness — a commitment to nonstop innovation — with timeless institutional values.
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